


The Soul of a Dragon

by Yemi Hikari (Yemi_Hikari)



Series: Time Slip [3]
Category: Xiaolin Showdown (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Crack, Detox, F/M, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2009-02-13
Updated: 2017-04-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:40:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 27,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25172521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yemi_Hikari/pseuds/Yemi%20Hikari
Summary: With the fact that Kimiko has returned supposidly safe and sound, Rai has to decide what to do with the fact that Chase Young's freedom is now in their hands. What ever the decision, it will greatly effect all of them.
Relationships: Kimiko Tohomiko/Chase Young
Series: Time Slip [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1802167
Kudos: 1
Collections: Focus on Female Characters





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer – I do not own Xiaolin Showdown. This is the sequel for my fanfic, Time Slip. It is suggested that one does read that fanfic before they start this one, but that is ones choice whether or not to do so. Also, the pairing for this story is Chase/Kimiko.

Chase Young sat on his stone throne, tapping his fingers to a steady rhythm, making a slight booming noise that also made a sort of rapping or clicking sound to it. He was thinking about certain things that had transpired between him and a certain Xiaolin monk, the female one to be exact. Or the one that he could also call Lian-Li.

His mind was irritated with the fact that for some reason her words stung deep, something that he could not easily explain away. He thought very carefully about the situation and realized that he had been surprised with the whole situation. What he couldn't figure out was whether or not the girl was trying to fool him or not. He remembered some specific words to her in the past.

" _You surprised me Spicer, and I am rarely surprised, but never fooled. By the way, love the perfume._ " Of course, that had been before the girl had become Lian-Li when she had been drawn to the past due to something that had been partially due to Chase Young's past-self's fault. His memorieshad been foggy until he realized that Kimiko and Lian-Li was the same person, then they had come rushing back to him.

He also couldn't help but remember the promise that the two of them had made with each other, something that had in turn forced him to choose between losing his freedom to the Xiaolin monks, or her losing her freedom forever to him. He had made the choice to throw the showdown in a way that would hopefully not look like he was letting the Wind Monk win.

_Kimiko paused at first, and then carefully choose her words. "We can be friends… with the understanding that friends don't put up with their friends doing things they really shouldn't do. I promise that."_

_Chase blinked a couple of times. The girl had been very careful as to how she worded what she did. "I promise that. Always be friends… and look out for each other… even if it means turning their back on the other."_

"Seems my jungle cats, that I have finally backed myself into a corner and I need to find a way out of it… and this is one that I don't think I will be able to without breaking my promise… which is something I will not do… a challenge perhaps… but unlike the others I do no like this one,"

However, there were some of the girl's words that bothered him. The reason that she had made the promise that she had was so that he would not entrap her with the friendship that they had actually formed in the past. She had specifically told him that it was never intended to entrap him into his current predicament, which he actually did believe.

Of course there was another part of the conversation that was still making his temper boil, for some odd reason that he could not place his finger on. Typically, he could place his finger on such things, but for some reason he felt that his mind was trying to hide what the truth was because he had the feeling that the truth was not something that he wanted to hear.

_This caused Chase to smirk. "Should have known. Ching is dead… as I've said, there is no soul there."_

" _Chase Young, Ching's soul was formed from his honor. That was who made him who he is. You still have your honor. Do you really think you have no soul?" Kimiko smiled._

Chase frowned at this, realizing that what was going on was that the girl had actually suggested that he might still have a soul inside him. Either he was angry that she might be right, meaning he had thrown away a good deal of his life, or that he was of the opinion that because she believed this, she might try to redeem him. As he did not care for others, it had to be the second one.

More words echoed through his head, ones from yet again when he was young and at the level that the monks currently were. _"When ever I will have the picture of Ching kissing me, I'll imagine Chase kissing me. What if I didn't_ _want_ _you to be my first kiss?"_ Chase had been contemplating these words for a long time, and had when younger, not realized the meaning of them, but now the clues all fit.

He had misinterpreted the meaning of the words to mean she was thinking about the two names he was called by them, Ching being the childhood nickname that a couple of other monks had called him, their names long forgotten. In truth, it had been a comparison to his past-self to his now self, which meant by reacting the way he did, kissing her again, he had done wrong by her… caused her dishonor, when he was trying to repair a previous dishonor.

"Let's face it… one's younger self never has the full knowledge that one now has to not make the mistakes that one eventually regrets, and unfortunately, I want to kill my child self for this mess it's put me in, but then where would that leave me," came Chase's sarcastic joke.

Then he thought about what she had said about not wanting him to be her first kiss, not that he could blame her. Only a fool would attempt to kiss him without fear of death… thankfully Wuya was not that foolish… yet. But the fact that she had said these words meant that she had someone else in mind for her first kiss likely.

He quickly guessed who it could possibly be and called his eyeball glass and sent out his little spies, though he rarely did this, but he felt that he had to know more. "Bring into the eye view the Wind Dragon."

**M**

Raimundo was leaning against a wall, watching the other monks eating their food with relish… or in Kimiko's case, with mannerisms. He still couldn't guess why Kimiko was still angry with him, but then the other two monks still were, as so seemingly was Master Fung. Then again, Master Fung was not mad, more of stern about the whole matter.

He had made the decision, instead of giving up one friend, that he was to give up both so that he wouldn't have had to choose. He thought carefully back to what had been going on and tried to think hard about how he could have made a better choice in this whole matter.

First option, as he was the youngest, would have been Omi. If he had chosen Omi, then Omi might have gotten the idea that Clay was being chosen because if Raimundo lost, Clay would be more formidable in the rematch that might necessarily be needed in the future. As for Clay, the cowboy might have been miffed with the fact that Raimundo picked the younger monk to go into the mix.

The second option was Clay then. If he had picked Clay, Omi's mind might yet again have drifted off to thinking that Raimundo didn't think very highly of him and his ability. As for Clay, the cowboy might have taken it as a sign that their friendship was not important at all. This left Rai thinking of any other solutions to the problem.

The third option he came up with while standing there was to put Dojo into the pot, but then that would likely have literally put Dojo into the pot. The last thing that Rai needed was to have handed over Dojo to a crazed psychopath like Chase Young, who happened to have a liking for Dojo soup.

The fourth option… the fourth option would have been to have refused. Raimundo had never heard of the terms of a Xiaolin Showdown being refused before, so he was rather baffled about this one. How was it that he could just leave Kimiko there at the mercy of Chase Young to do the same thing that he had done before.

Thought that he had done before, as Kimiko stated that wasn't the case and the Heylin monk was quite affronted by the fact that Raimundo had gone and accused him of such an atrocity. Also… by picking what he had… did that not mean that he choose Kimiko over the other two. That meant…

Before Raimundo could think about what it meant, he was interrupted by Omi. "Raimundo… what exactly was that thing that Chase did to Kimiko?"

Raimundo watched as Kimiko's eye twitched a bit; however, the Wind Dragon beat her to the punch, literally, his fist coming down on Omi's head. "Omi… I was wrong, all right. It is also _not_ something for Omi ears."

"That was mean!" Omi had tears welling in his eyes and ran to hide behind Kimiko.

"I wasn't mad at Omi Rai," Kimiko turned away from him, still in a huff about earlier. "I am still mad at you for accusing Chase of doing that thing… and speaking of it in front of Omi!"

"Hey… how is it that your taking sides of that psychopath!" Raimundo protested.

"Rai… it wasn't just his honor that you brought into question, but in some ways mine. Did you ever think of it that way?" the girl snapped.

"How…" Omi suddenly had his mouth covered by Clay.

"Partner… this isn't a discussion for Omi to hear, all right," Clay started as Omi got a very disappointed look on his face. Sometimes he was too curious for his own good.

"Also Rai… what are you going to do now? His freedom was at stake here! He's now like a slave to us!" Kimiko ranted.

"Heads up, but a certain somebody is spying on us again," Clay suddenly commented, pointing to the object that transmited Chase Young's video signal. Kimiko narrowed her eyes at this, remembering something that Master Dashi had told her earlier.

"But he was told not to attack us," Omi pouted.

"He's not attacking, he's spying. He's like a peeping tom," Kimiko snorted, being sarcastic. It was then that everything went black as a fire ball sped that way.

**M**

Chase Young closed his eyes as the signal disappeared. He knew that Kimiko's comment was supposed to in some way sting and tell him that she didn't want him spying on the monks. He had to think carefully about the words that had come from her mouth and what she might have possibly meant from them. The tone of her voice was sarcastic, which meant she also had a reason for using those specific words.

Then it clicked, and quickly too. The Fire Dragon had come to realize that she no longer had anything to fear of Chase Young… and it was because of that one promise that he had made to her so long ago. She knew that he was powerful and could do major damage, but also that he would hold true of his promise.

It wasn't an arrogant lack of fear either, which was what Chase Young typically found. It was one that had respect to it, most likely due to the fact that she found that his ability to keep his word to be something that was worth respect. Of course, that she had picked her words carefully with him also came to be something that needed to be held in respect… she had probably come to the conclusion in that three way showdown to do such with the warrior any time she dealt with him, not realizing the chance she would get.

"What exactly are you doing?" a voice called out, causing Chase's head to snap up and glare at her.

"Really, it is none of your business," Chase muttered.

"I think it is, as I live here too," Wuya cooed at him.

"I have no time for your games witch. You are a guest here, not a resident, and even if you were a resident, I can easily evict you. Consider your eviction notice given,"

Wuya shrugged her shoulders. "Chase Young… you say that, but you welcome me and the others back so easily… Jack… Katnappe… you name it…"

"Leave! You've bothered me enough for today!" Chase snapped, changing to his dragon form, if one could call it that. Wuya gave him a glare and hurried off.


	2. Katnappe's Invite

The air around the temple was crisp and cool as the sun was setting over the edge for the day, an amber glow covering everything. It was in this setting that Omi found himself sitting on the fountain edge, meditating about the events that had transpired that day. Many things confused the Xiaolin monk; some were from how old he was, while others were from how naïve he tended to be about certain things.

The thing that bothered Omi the most was that Raimundo had accused Chase Young of something dishonorable, though Omi was still trying to figure this out what this dishonorable thing could be. What bothered him about all of this was that out of all the Heylin side, Omi had thought he had come to know that a certain Heylin warrior was built upon honor, so then why would he have done something dishonorable.

Of course, from the choice of Raimundo's words, it was obvious that the Brazilian boy had thought the same, but there was also something that had led him to at least for a moment to doubt the idea that all had come to know of a certain someone having an extremely honorable side. For Raimundo to have thought this; some things had to have happened and this thing had to be very bad.

Though Omi felt that he could defiantly trust Chase Young to not do something dishonorable, but then he really couldn't tell for sure unless he knew what this thing was that had gotten everyone so upset, including Chase for Raimundo to have accused him of having done such a thing. So Omi felt that he had to think about these things carefully, real carefully.

The first thing that Omi decided to think thoroughly about was the fact that Chase Young was spying on them. He knew that because the monks had no idea yet of what to do with Chase Young that Rai had ordered the warrior to remain in his lair until further notice. Along with this had been the order not to attack them. So then, what was the purpose of spying on them?

This bothered Omi as there had to be a logical explanation for as to why Chase had done this. Since Chase was defiantly known for his honor, it meant that the reason for spying on them wasn't to formulate an attack on them. However, it was defiantly being done for reconnaissance on all of them. The reason for this could not be easily determined, so Omi's mind went to the next thing of business.

For sure, what was it that had been falsely accused of? There were a few clues, one of which being that whatever it was that it was something that involved two people, one being a girl and one being a boy. Also, whatever it was could also bring about dishonor to one or both in the party, which explained why Kimiko was upset about the whole thing. Also, it was something that they didn't want them to know about.

This caused Omi to frown. The one reason that they tended to keep things from him was the fact that he was younger then the rest of the group. This also meant that they were treating him like a child in the matters going on about anything and everything… yet again. He felt that because they were a team that they should be more upfront with him.

"Why is it they see to treat me like a child," Omi muttered to no one in particular. However, Raimundo overheard him as he was passing by.

"Omi? Are you referring again to the fact we won't explain that thing to you?" the boy sighed.

Omi glanced up at him all of a sudden, a look of utter irritation on his face. "Should I really be speaking with you?"

"Does this have to do with the fact that I accused Chase of something that he didn't do? Isn't that over now?" Rai sighed, rolling his eyes at the younger boy.

"I was thinking more of how you choose Kimiko over Clay and myself," Omi gave his sternest reply. "But I guess that applies too. I may not _yet_ know what you accused Chase and Kimiko of, but I do know that it was not a good thing for you to do."

"Hold on… accused Kimiko of?" Rai was rather taken aback by this statement from the younger one. "Omi… where did you get this idea from?"

"The fact that Kimiko referred to her honor also in a way being brought into question… something is bothering me about all of this," Omi stated.

"You aren't old enough to know about these things!" Rai groaned. "So stop asking… and before you ask, I am not going to tell you what it is!"

"Omi partner is still going on about that?" Clay suddenly asked. "Have any of you seen Kimiko… I rather need to speak with her about something."

"Oh… to borrow Goo Zombies?" Omi asked, not realizing it was a serious conversation that the cowboy wanted to have with the girl. "No… I haven't seen her."

"When what you want out of a girl is more then just a video game, then I'm sure that we'll explain things more," Rai sighed.

"Raimundo!" Clay shook his head.

"By the way… there was a comment before Kimiko got lost that you two were hoping I would forget about," Omi stated rather bluntly. "Does that have to do with this too?"

"Yes," both boys stated, giving each other worried looks.

"Am I not considered mature for my age," Omi suddenly brought up.

"Sorry Omi," Kimiko stated coming from out of one of the doorways with a book. She went and sat below one of the trees. "I is rather hard to explain why it is that we can't tell you these certain things, but there are reasons that we can't."

"But Chase Young did nothing to you?" Omi asked.

Kimiko's lips were suddenly sealed, not speaking a word, remembering where her last speaking up to this question affected her. However, Clay, knowing what he did rephrased the question. "Did Chase Young, in the last century do anything to you?"

Rai raised his eyebrow at this, muttering in confusion as to where this question was going. "Clay… have you lost some marbles."

"I don't see any on the ground," Omi stated with his misunderstanding of some modern phrases.

Kimiko's book suddenly snapped closed. "No… unless you count that time I pretended to be Jack Spicer, and that doesn't count."

"Your tones different!" Raimundo suddenly snapped, not believing his ears. "Was it that incident with the perfume that you were referring to?"

"You already knew about that Rai," Kimiko rolled her eyes at the boy.

Dojo came out then bearing a platter of tea. "Hey guys… I decided to try this new tea recipe that I found… a certain combination that leads to the monumental amount of relaxation… I figure we rather need it."

"Hey Dojo… shut up," came Rai's response, rather irritated.

Dojo's eyes suddenly grew big. He turned around in rather a huff. "If I'm not appreciated, then…"

A pillow suddenly hit him from supposedly no where and someone spoke up, purring as they did so. "You'll run to Chase Young again and get turned into soup this time? Believe me… a _lot_ of people know about that."

Clay glared, not knowing where to look. "Katnappe… should have known. What is it that you varmint of a woman are doing here?"

"I came to ask Kimiko if she wants to have a sleep over with me," Katnappe suddenly jumped down to the ground.

Kimiko raised an eyebrow suddenly. "What ever for… don't you have your own friends Katnappe?"

"I do… not…" the girl purred. "My situation is not like yours… one might say… my friends rather got chased away."

"Because of the psycho kittens of yours," Raimundo snapped.

"Hey… I made those after all my friends left," Katnappe sighed.

"How can we trust you not to harm Kimiko?" Omi asked.

"On my honor!" Katnappe raised a paw into the air.

"Umm…" came the response from everyone.

"No offence Katnappe, but… the only one on the Heylin side any one can trust honor wise is Chase Young," Kimiko sighed. "And as you see… _somebody_ brought even that into question."

"How come you are so interested in that guy?" Rai snapped.

"That's what I want the gossip about!" Katnappe purred, quite excited.

"Hold on… there is nothing… what…" Kimiko was a bit taken aback.

"Look… how many girls are there on the Xiaolin side?" Katnappe flexed her claws.

"Oh… fifteen," Raimundo stated sarcastically.

"Oh… I didn't know that… if they are all like Kimiko, I bet they all wail on your guys' buts… defiantly," Katnappe smiled.

"I was being sarcastic," Rai snapped again.

"Well… Kimiko does dress many different ways," Omi suddenly blurted out, a big smile on his face.

"Omi…" Kimiko shook his head.

Omi's smile wavered. "A joke…"

"Omi was trying to make a joke?" Dojo shook his head in disbelief.

"Any ways… as I was saying… Omi's attempt at a joke aside… needs some work though… there is only one on the Xiaolin side. How many are on the Heylin side," Katnappe went behind Omi and began to flex her claws on his head.

"Two," came Omi's reply.

"All right… I know that you don't know how to be sarcastic… where ever you got that idea from, I don't know," the cat costumed girl suddenly sighed.

"There is another?" Omi suddenly asked. "I counted you and Wuya."

"Wuya is not a girl… let alone a lady. I can have girl talk with her… but seriously, it's none that great. I say, call a short term truce so that Kimiko and I can both have some girl time. I've already asked my parents _and_ they are home and expecting her," the girl suddenly laughed.

"Hold on… did you do that just so that we'll let Kimiko go?" Rai asked.

"Duh… yeah… I am desperate for girl gossip," Katnappe smiled.

Suddenly, Omi's face beamed. "Why not invite Jack over for a sleep over, then you would have plenty of girl gossip… as girl is a girly… Rai and Clay always say so."

"Hey!" came the response from the other two boys.

"Well… I say it too… though it has a different effect," Kimiko laughed.

Rai frowned for a bit, then turned to Kimiko. "I don't see a problem with it… I mean…"

"I only need Master Fung's permission Rai," Kimiko snapped.

"I don't think people are exactly happy with you," Katnappe purred, again flexing her claws on a bald head. "And by the way… that was a good joke Omi!"

"And I'll go too," Dojo suddenly spoke up. "I've been wanting some nice nail polish and makeup time."

"Please tell me he didn't just say that," Katnappe suddenly stopped what she was doing.

"He did… Dojo… it isn't as if you'll be anything worth the time of the others…" Rai muttered.

"And do I need your permission?" Dojo suddenly huffed. "I…"

"It's fine… he can go… my cats are locked in the basement… and… unless a Shen Gong Wu activates… no problem… of course…"

"So you can have Kimiko then?" Rai snapped.

"That wasn't… good grief… good intensions… do I need to yell pillow fight to get my point across,"

"No offence missy… but we shouldn't trust you,"

"If I bring no Wu, then no problem," Kimiko stated suddenly. "She isn't tempted to steal and if she ties me up… I am the Dragon of Fire… I can burn my way out of ropes."

"Plus… you guys will be doing both of us a favor… us girls need our girl time and I haven't had any since… a couple of years except with my mom," Katnappe purred. "I promise on my nine lives!"

"I don't know if it is a good idea… but then my judgment has been off the past few days…" Rai commented.

"I'll ask Master Fung," Kimiko started. "And… if he says yes, both Dojo and I will be there. Just keep your promise Katnappe, or else I will burn your house down and your parents will be pissed, no?"

"Ohh… that's one of the reasons I like you… and don't like you," Katnappe smiled. "I mean… if you were at my school, you would be… like… a queen bee or something… of course… my kitties like to eat bees. I'll see you later."

"Wait," Omi started. "Can I ask you what it was that Rai accused Chase of earlier?"

"What?" Katnappe was rather taken aback, then pulled back her cat hood, turning Omi around, frowning at the same time. "All right kiddo… this isn't Katnappe speaking any more, but Ashley. This really is something you need to be older for, O.K.? I think you're cute and everything, but it won't work."

Katnappe suddenly waved and took off, pulling her hood back on. Rai shook his head. "I am not sure if this is a good idea."

"Who asked you?" Kimiko snapped.

Omi then brought a ball of water out of the fountain to hit Raimundo in the face. "I believe someone was also for this at one point too."

"I've got a bad feeling!" Raimundo yelled, suddenly chasing after the younger monk, leaving Kimiko and Clay by themselves.

"Kimiko, can I ask you something," Clay started. "Are you Lian-Li?"


	3. Clay’s Questions

"Kimiko, can I ask you something," Clay started. "Are you Lian-Li?"

Kimiko had been smiling up until then, yet while the shock was evident on her face, her smile was still there. She then, through gritted teeth asked a question of the cowboy. "Clay… why do you ask something like that?"

"Because… well," Clay couldn't come up with a good answer about the whole situation that wouldn't upset Kimiko too much.

"Well? Spit it out already," the girl sighed, irritation in her voice.

"Long story short, when we were looking for you when you went through that portal, Dojo made the comment along the lines of Lian-Li being great couple from those memos of his," Clay tipped his hat to cover his eyes.

"I am going to have to remember to get him for that," Kimiko stated in what she thought was a voice not loud enough for Clay to hear her.

However, the cowboy heard quite well. "Then you are Lian-Li… and that means…"

"Clay… finish the story with why you suspected such a thing," Kimiko stated smartly. "Until then I would confirm or deny all of this."

"Well, you called Chase Young by the name Ching. Dojo later remembered that Ching was Chase Young's nickname at one point," Clay commented.

Kimiko shook her head at the boy. "You weren't supposed to find out about this… not until I figured out a way to explain it to you guys without you and Rai going ballistic on me… and Rai already has."

"I don't get it… surely Dojo was joking about all of this," Clay laughed. "I mean… how could he have gotten the idea that you… Lian-Li… was Chase Young's first crush."

"What exactly did Dojo say to all of you," Kimiko asked, concerned that some things may have come out that she didn't want to just yet.

"Just that he thought it was real cute…" Clay frowned at the girl.

"Clay, can I ask if you've told anyone else about this?" Kimiko sighed, going and sitting back beneath a tree while the cowboy monk went and took a seat on a bench.

"Well… no," Clay frowned at all of this.

"The only other person who has figured out all of this happens to be Master Fung. He was visited by Master Dashi while you guys were out. That was how come he knew that you guys didn't come and get his help. Master Dashi had a talk with me about… certain things."

"So… please tell me that Chase was five or six years old," Clay suddenly stated out loud.

"Fourteen… he was fourteen, a year younger then me, though I thought when I first saw him that he was my age." Kimiko placed a hand on her cheek, irritated about the whole situation.

"But it is hard to imagine Chase Young… at that age… like Rai, you and me," Clay sighed. The fountain gurgled behind them, complementing his feelings.

"Clay… I _can_ imagine him at that age because I saw him at that age. He was a lot like what he is now, but a lot different from what he is now too. I couldn't believe how naïve he was about certain things… but then look at Omi,"

"Naïve… Kimiko… you did lie about him doing something to you, it just wasn't what Rai thought it was, was it?"

"You have to promise you won't say anything or do anything about it… it is relatively in the past," Kimiko commented.

"If I feel like I have to, I will tell Rai. He is the leader you know. And if I feel like I want to, I will pulverize Chase Young," Clay became extremely serious in his demeanor.

"Fine… I will tell you… on this condition. _If_ I find out that you have told anyone or that you have the idea to go beat of Chase to get revenge for something that doesn't need revenging, I will get even with you," Kimiko suddenly commented.

"And how would you go and do that," Clay laughed. "Beat me up like you always do? Sorry Kimiko, but that just won't work."

"How about this," Kimiko smiled deviously. "If you do those things, I will take a picture of your sister and send it to my friends saying that it is you dressed in drag."

Clay suddenly turned pale at this, realizing that Kimiko was serious about the whole thing. It took a few minutes for him to realize that Kimiko was serious about this, so he bent his head down. "It's a deal… I won't say anything or do anything."

"Good. What ended up happening was that I went into the past. Guan was the Dragon of Earth, Tao was the Dragon of Wind and Doan was the Dragon of Water," Kimiko started.

"That would make Chase Young the Dragon of Fire," Clay sighed. "Is this why Dojo thought all of this?"

"No… actually, I asked that. Chase Young is the Dragon of the Mind. Doesn't that fit him well?" Kimiko stated.

"There are supposed to only be four elements though," Clay sighed. "I mean, we would have more if it weren't for that."

"Jermaine is a Dragon too…" Kimiko commented. "Plus, the Shen Gong Wu have other elements."

"But I thought that thunder was associated with wind," Clay shook his head. He then frowned at her. "Are you trying to purposely change the subject?"

"No… it's my story, so let me tell it!" Kimiko shook her head at him, though she really wasn't mad at him. "Where to go next… well… I had different luck with the fact that unlike Omi, when he went into the past, in the fact that I am a girl. I had to dress as a boy."

"So… Chase Young had a crush on a boy?" Clay's eyes suddenly twitched.

"He didn't start having a crush on me until he found out I _was_ a girl. It was an accident that he found out… but he did see me before that… and told me to my face that the outfit I had been wearing was inappropriate,"

"Hold on, how did he…"

"Alright, I have to start over. Chase was dared by the two monks you don't know about…" Kimiko started.

"Kimiko… I would rather have the short story. I am starting to think that I don't want to know some of the details," Clay sighed. "What I want to know is what did he do that you don't want to tell us."

"Fine… he kissed me," Kimiko suddenly stated. She was in complete shock when Clay was suddenly on the ground, laughing very hard. "What exactly is so funny about that?"

"Chase Young… actually kissing a girl… that's nearly as… nearly as ridiculous as when he… when Rai accused him of…" Clay couldn't stop laughing. "I mean… come on Kimiko… Mr. Unromantic."

"Are you forgetting that he _has_ come onto me before?!" Kimiko snapped.

"Oh, come on Kimiko, when?" Clay was still laughing about the whole situation.

"He made a comment on _Jack's_ perfume," Kimiko growled out.

"Oh, come on Kimiko, Jack stinks worse then…" Clay suddenly stopped, his jaw dropping. "That time… that time when you pretended to be Jack… oh… psaw… why didn't I see that one… if I had… sorry Kimiko… it didn't click that he was flirting with you at that time."

"He probably wasn't flirting with me to get into a relationship with me. He was probably flirting to make his point clear that he wasn't fooled with our little set up. That… and to upset me," Kimiko sighed. "And believe me… it worked."

"I wish I had noticed... Rai and I could have done something about it," Clay sighed, using his hat as a fan to cool himself off.

"Done what… gone and beat him up? Thank you, but I can take care of myself. And believe me… Chase Young is too honorable to dishonor a woman… unless it's Wuya, and then it isn't in the way that Rai was talking about," Kimiko sighed, putting her hands behind her back. "Which is why you can't tell Rai that Chase Young kissed me… twice I might add."

"Twice!" Clay suddenly turned pale. "You let him kiss you twice?"

"I didn't expect the first one… and the second one neither…" Kimiko sighed. "And if you count the 'kiss of life', it counts as three."

"So… now you're telling me that he saved your life… he's got it bad," Clay muttered, suddenly moving to sitting on the ground in front of the bench.

"No… I saved his life. If he had died… the future I know wouldn't be the same," Kimiko sighed. "It's just… I didn't want him to be my first kiss."

"Raimundo?" Clay suddenly commented, not looking her in the eyes. "You've been waiting for him to make a move, haven't you?"

"I know… its rather obvious… isn't it?" Kimiko sighed.

"How do you know Chase Young won't do something to Rai?" the boy suddenly asked, becoming quite serious.

"First, there is the 'don't attack us' part. Second, he made a promise to me a long time ago and he's keeping it. Third, it would be dishonorable to do such," Kimiko sighed.

"About that promise… is that why he threw the battle?" Clay whistled. "'cause if so, that was so not in character for him and it explains a lot."

"I know it does," Kimiko sighed. "I have to go talk to Master Fund now. I wonder what happened to those two."

"Those two?" Clay asked, getting up to walk with her to the inside of the building.

"Tao and Doan of course," Kimiko smiled. "They also ended up being sent to the future… I don't know when though. Want to see what they did to Chase when they thought he was kissing a boy? He wasn't…"

Clay's eyebrow rose up. "Why do I think you've come to have some odd sense of humor because of this ordeal?"

Kimiko snapped open her picture phone and showed him the picture. "So, what do you think?"

Clay suddenly turned pale. "Please tell me this isn't where you got the idea to blackmail me."

"It is," Kimiko laughed. "I am going to have fun with the photos I took…"

Clay could only shake his head at her.


	4. Monk Guan

At one of the other temples, Guan was sitting in the lotus position, meditating in the garden. His mind was contemplating certain things that had happened over the last couple of years, including that of the Xiaolin temple that Dashi had founded gaining a new group of apprentices a little less then a year ago. They dealt with what he was contemplating.

He had to also wonder how he had fallen into such a depression as he had to have let one weapon, when he had so many of the same kind and could make so many more, to have become such a big issue at all. Of course, he knew the reason for this by heart, though he couldn't say he was happy with it.

When Chase Young beat people, it was known that they became members of his cat warriors. Yet Chase Young had not done that on the day that he had defeated Monk Guan. Instead, the young man had taken the weapon from him. This had gotten Monk Guan to thinking about why Chase Young might have done that.

The only reason that he could think of at the time was the fact that, while Chase had changed sides, Guan was still his companion on the other side, an old friend. This meant that Chase still held the bonds of friendship dear, though he barely ever resembled the person that Guan had grown up with, he had defiantly changed.

This had gotten Guan to thinking about whether or not there was still some good in Chase Young. A villain like Hannibal Roy Bean wouldn't even think about treating past allies with respect and would do just the opposite and annihilate them or decimate them, or do something else and get enjoyment out of this.

This led Guan to try to figure out a way to figure out if perchance that Chase might still have a soul left in his body. Everything he knew about the soup told him no, it wasn't possible. But something had been eating him up, causing him to become more and more depressed with the situation.

He had then gone and asked for his weapon back. He had commented to Chase about the fact that he hadn't turned him into one of his cats. The response he had received was one of anger, for it seemed that Chase knew exactly what Monk Guan was trying to find out. The response illiterated that he cared not for friendship at all… that Monk Guan was just a tool to get something he was in need of.

Monk Guan had then received the trade that Chase wanted, a smirk on the others face, telling Monk Guan that Chase was playing one of those games of his. He was doing this to prove to the other that he did in truth not care about friendship. He asked Monk Guan to bring him one Dojo Kanojo Cho, yet another old friend.

Instantly, a plot formed in Guan's head, to use the monks to prove that his original idea had been true. He pretended to turn on them, then came back to rescue them, tacking great risk on the part of the four monks, Dojo and himself. But if what he thought was true, happened to be true, then it would end up being worth it, for everyone involved.

Fortunately, Monk Guan happened to win the battle, his depression from all this time fading away, making him realize that perhaps this wasn't the best route to take, but in truth was indeed something that would end up being important to everything. Chase had done exactly what Monk Guan had expected… he had released all of them.

He had also paid close attention to the look on Chase Young's face when he had won. He might have been looking into things too much, but he didn't think that the defeat was the only thing that was upsetting the ex-ally of his, but the fact that Chase Young's personality forbid him to go back on his promise. He had to have known then that Guan had planned all of this.

There was a lot of bitterness now between the two of them, but Guan could not forget that someone had once been his friend. This was possibly, what drove him to do something so stupid and foolhardy, but if Chase could be brought back over to the Xiaolin side, things might actually turn out for the better.

A sudden thumping was heard in front of him along with two groans. He opened his eyes, and to his surprise, saw Tao and Doan in a pile. Tao was getting mad that he couldn't get up because Doan was on top of him. They hadn't realized where or when they were, until Guan spoke up. "Do you two know how long you've been missing? Fifteen-hundred years, give or take."

Both boys suddenly looked up at him in shock. Their next move was to scramble out of the heap. Tao sneered at Guan. "Don't be silly… it's only been at most three years… that's how much you've aged, no?"

"I'll show you to a place you two can stay," Guan stated, standing up. "And by the way, it is Master Monk Guan now."

Doan groaned out loud. "Tao… he wouldn't lie to us… he's being to serious."

"I bet it is a trick that he planned with Ching for when we get back," Tao laughed. "Wait until Master Dashi hears about this."

"I wish that you wouldn't mention the first person in front of me," Guan commented. "I also wish that you would have more respect for the Master Dragon… he isn't around anymore…"

Guan led them down the hallways to where the bedrooms for this particular temple were. He didn't speak to them but could overhear their conversation clearly. Doan was the first to mumble to the other. "If he doesn't want Chase mentioned in front of him, and he told us to have more respect for Dashi… does this mean they're dead?"

"Dead? Ching I can believe," Tao muttered, continuing to be disrespectful. "Master Dashi, no…"

"I don't think he's lying… I think a great many years have passed Tao… we've missed some important things," Doan had panic in his voice too. However, Guan didn't want to hear anymore from the two just yet and had to figure a good way to tell them that things were… how to put it, different in extreme ways.

"I need you two to settle in and get some sleep," Guan stated. "No ifs ands or buts about it."

"No ifs ands or buts about it?" Tao suddenly snorted with laughter. "What kind of terminology is that?"

"I heard Dashi use it before… it's from the future," Doan chimed in with a rather depressed tone.

"Then he picked it up from Dashi," Tao sighed. "Good night!'

Guan closed his eyes and headed back out to the temple grounds, where he could meditate about certain things some more, including what he should possibly do with the two Dragons that were now in present time. It was then that he heard someone clearing their throat and yet again, his meditation was interrupted.

Guan's eyes raised and he then stood up and bowed to his guest. "What do I owe this honor to, Master Dashi?"

"I've met Lian-Li," Dashi commented.

Guan narrowed his eyes at this. "Do you mean just having met Lian-Li when she traveled to the past, or her future or past self from that point?"

"I know how she got back to the future, if that is what you want to know," Dashi smiled. "She and her friends are very interesting I must say the least. As for Dojo, he's the same… as to be expected."

"So… in other words, you came to tell me that she got back safely? I have news that Tao and Doan showed up a few minutes ago," Guan commented.

"I see. I will need you to take care of them. If they are returned to their time, then we run into the problem of chancing the change of the future. But no, that wasn't what I had to tell you… after I visited Lian-Li, I went and saw Chase Young," the Master Dragon was still being perky about the whole thing.

"That isn't something you should have had to see," Guan commented. "He's changed and isn't the same person."

"I would say he's the same person, just having grown in ways I would rather he have not grown," Dashi suddenly commented. "I can tell that his soul is still there. Because of a promise to Lian-Li that he made in the past, when he recognized her now, he choose to give up his freedom instead of hers."

"Hold on…" Guan had become confused. "I don't understand how that could have happened."

"Simple… you know Lian-Li in this time frame, though her name here is not Lian-Li," Dashi's smile betrayed nothing.

"That I know her… the only one that I might associate with…" Guan paused, thinking about who he knew during that time frame, and in truth, only three of which were female. "The girl Dragon? It can't be… he fell for that girl? Lian-Li never lost her temper like Kimiko does."

"Well… Lian-Li didn't get the chance to lose her temper at anyone," Dashi commented on this note.

Guan made a face, thinking to himself about what Chase Young would do next, his first thoughts being that it would be something really stupid. He then had to chase this thought away as it had been a long time since the time that Lian-Li had appeared and his temperament had changed… drastically one might say. He also wasn't an adolescent any more.

Before he could speak up, Dashi then spoke up. "You're probably wondering what this had to do with anything. I believe that Chase Young still has a soul in him, that it is still there, as he did the honorable thing. Also, I know of some events that have transpired… like a previous Showdown for four monks' freedom?

Guan glanced at the ground. "Neither the best idea I exactly had, I admit… nor my best time."

"I also know that Chase got one Omi to travel to the Yin-Yang world and got the young one to leave his good chi back in the world," Dashi sighed. "And then Kimiko thought that Jack was going to have destroyed the chi."

"If Jack had destroyed the chi back then, we would have the problem with the fact that it would have also destroyed his bad chi. Yin can not exist without Yang, and Yang can not exist without Yang. There are certain creatures that are completely one, but they have their opposites out there somewhere," Guan muttered.

"Anyways… I've been filled in on certain issues and things that have happened. I do not know what the outcome will be… yet," Dashi sighed. "I can only hope for the best. However, I felt you needed a heads up of the situation. I should be leaving now."

"It was good to see you again, Master Dragon," Guan bowed, allowing the man to leave.


	5. Master Fung

Kimiko knew that the key point to getting to go to Katnappe's for a sleepover was to somehow convince Master Fung that she should be allowed to go. Considering the past that the girl had with the monks, this may or may not be an easy task for her to accomplish. Dojo was going with her so that he might convince Master Fung that they should both go.

Of course, Kimiko couldn't tell Dojo that he was likely to make the situation even more unlikely, but she didn't have the heart to tell him off and turn him down. Plus, Master Fung would know somehow that she had done something that she wouldn't have been to happy with herself with and this might actually be an even bigger hindrance.

Master Fung was meditating in the dojo when she peaked her head around the corner. He opened an eye. "Come here young Dragon, something is on your mind."

Kimiko went and sat in front of him and was going to open her mouth when Dojo opened his big gob. "We are wanting to go to a sleepover at Katnappe's."

Mater Fung opened both eyes and raised an eyebrow. "Really… I thought she was on the Heylin side?"

"I know…" Kimiko twiddled her fingers. "It isn't as if she invited me to join the Heylin side."

"Some would think that is actually close," Master Fung sighed.

"But… she did come and get the boys to help me. She could have just left me to rot in Chase Young's Lair, no?" Kimiko commented. "Thus she can't be entirely evil. Plus… one of the things that I gave up when I came to the temple was girl time. I mean… the boys can hang out with each other. Me on the other hand… who am I to hang out with? Dojo is feministic… but no offence, that doesn't cut it."

"None taken," Dojo piped up.

"So this is why you wish to go?" Master Fung suddenly asked. "And Dojo would be going with you?"

"Yes…" Kimiko nodded her head with excitement.

"Well… what do you think she wants out of it?" Fung asked.

"I think she wants to find out what happened," Kimiko suddenly looked down trodden. "It is actually stuff that if she really wanted to, she could use against both Chase and me."

"Master Dashi already filled me in… as much as possible that is," the monk stated. "However… we can not know for sure what Katnappe's plans in fact are. So, unless you go, we will not know."

"So… is that a yes?" Kimiko asked, she and Dojo both looking quite hopeful. Master Fung nodded his head. Kimiko gave a cheer. "Yes!"

With this, the master raised an eyebrow, to which Kimiko gave him an embarrassed smile. She then bowed her head to him. "Thank you Master Fung."

She and Dojo then hurried out of the room, but not before knocking Omi over as they went. Master Fung motioned the boy over to him and to sit. "What is it that you wish to ask young monk?"

"Well… you know how Kimiko was captured by Chase Young?" Omi twiddled his thumbs. When Master Fung didn't move, Omi sighed and then continued. "See… Raimundo accused Chase of doing something to Kimiko that would tarnish possibly both his, Chase Young's that is, and Kimiko's honor. What was it that Raimundo was talking about?"

At first, Master Fung did not say anything to the young monk, and then he began to ask questions. "What exactly have the other's told you?"

"That I need to be older," Omi muttered. "Why do I have the feeling that you are going to say the same thing?"

"What do you think is the role of life for women?" Master Fung then asked.

"Ohh… I know this one. It is to be lady like, stay at home… be good little girls, and leave boys alone," Omi suddenly commented.

"When your perception grows beyond this, then I will explain the situation to you," Master Fung then stated. "And don't go looking to expand your perception… this is something that takes time."

Omi made a face at the old man, not happy about the situation. However, he got up and walked out of the room. On his way out, Rai saw him. "Hi Omi."

"I do not wish to speak with you Raimundo. I am still very, very angry with you," the younger boy fumed. Rai shrugged his shoulders then went to go sit in front of Master Fung.

"I see that you have confidence to just come with me with your problems now," Mater Fung commented.

"That wasn't why I didn't come to you when Kimiko disappeared. I really thought we could handle it… and if we couldn't… then we should come get you," Raimundo stated. "Of course… my decisions were not that good, were they?"

"No… they weren't the best one could have made," Master Fung commented. "But you had good reasons for not coming to get me. Part of growing up is figuring out what one can or can't do on their own."

"I really blew it when I allowed Chase Young to get his way with the Showdown, huh? And now all three are miffed with me," Raimundo continued, keeping a straight face.

"I do not blame them. Perhaps you let your feelings for one of your members get in the way?" Fung suddenly asked.

Rai gave him a confused look. "I am not quite sure what you mean by that."

"The fact that you do have a crush on one Kimiko?" Fung sighed.

"It's that obvious?" Raimundo rubbed the back of his head.

"Yes… and now even more so. Kimiko is… how to put it… she was not happy that you were willing to give up the others to rescue her. She was also not happy about the situation of you accusing Chase Young. That was a little rash. In fact… a lot of your actions revolve more around your crush on her then anything else," Master Fung sighed.

"I guess that I have to work on that, huh?" only to have the look given to him confirm it.

"Is there something else Rai?" Master Fung stated.

"It's about the fact that we have under our control one Heylin warrior," Rai muttered. "I seriously don't know what to do about that. I am tempted to make him swear loyalty to our side… to make him do embarrassing things… I even almost killed him…"

"So I heard," Master Fung sighed.

"But I am wondering if what ever I choose to do to him or with him, in the long run whether or not it will kill him. But… the idea I have… I want to try for it… I remember what he was like before he drank the soup in the alternative reality. Also… I don't like having someone else's freedom… it is to tempting and doesn't feel right. But for some reason, something is…"

"Eating away, telling you that keeping his freedom locked up will be less cumbersome then letting him run amuck?" Master Fung commented.

"Yeah… that. It would mean that we would have less to worry about. But I also don't want to kill of his spirit… though with him I think that would be hard to do… but I know that giving him his freedom is the wrong thing to do at this point," Rai sighed.

"Taming of the Shrew?" Master Fung commented.

"What?"

"A play by Shakespeare, where containing someone's freedom actually did them more good then bad… in that time frames standards," Fung commented.

"Wonderful… Shakespeare…" Rai groaned. "All I know is Romeo and Juliet, and that didn't end very nice."

"Yes, well… any more questions?" Fung watched his student carefully.

"No… thank you Master Fung," Rai got up and bowed to the master, then left the room.


	6. I Spy

Meditation was the best way to clear ones thoughts about things that one was worried about. One's mind could become as calm as a storm less sea, or as calm as the wind on a very sunny, warm morning. Thus, Chase Young had gone to a spot in his lair to be able to meditate and not have to think about the things that happened during the day. Typically, he meditated so that he could think clearer about things, but today was one of those exceptions.

That evening was also one of those times to when he could meditate for a long period of time, but ended up being interrupted by something, or more of someone. Well… one could call Jack a something, as the boy was defiantly not normal. The helio pad of his was what made the Heylin warrior's eyes snap open. He let out a growling response. "What is it that you want this time Spicer?"

"I'm bored," came the reply from the boy as he landed on the cliff. The awkward teenager folded his arms.

"And do you expect me to do something about that?" Chase was defiantly not in a very good mood. "I am not your babysitter."

"Technically," the cogs in Jack's mind were working fast and hard. "A baby sitter is any one who watches someone who is younger then them who is a kid. Teenagers, you know, are still considered kids these days. And if you think about it, when Omi changed the future, you actually were babysitting me and the Xiaolin monks."

The look that Chase suddenly gave Jack screamed murder. He was greatly resisting doing something to the boy that would come back later to haunt him. Of course, Jack was waiting for a response from the Heylin Warrior. "So?"

Chase continued to give him the not pleased look and switched from a meditative pose to standing with his arms crossed. Still Jack didn't get it. "I'm waiting for a response."

"The only teenager I know of who still needs what can be called babysitting is a useless bug by the name of Jack Spicer," Chase suddenly spit out, quite angry at the boy.

"Yeah… well… hey! That was meant to mean something negative, wasn't it?" Jack frowned.

"Of course it was. If you recall, I don't change diapers Jack," Chase snapped at the boy, reminding him of the time he made Jack change Cyclops.

"You are so mean," Jack pouted.

"That is why I'm evil, isn't it," Chase gave a small smile. He didn't expect what Jack was about to say.

"Sometimes I prefer the good Chase Young to the bad Chase Young," Jack muttered, hoping that the other person didn't hear him.

Chase raised an eyebrow, then decided not to push the matter as he wanted Jack to leave as soon as possible. "What is it exactly that you came here for Jack?"

"This!" Jack suddenly held up a black, robotic cat. "This is my Spy Cat Bot!"

Chase narrowed his eyes. "What did I say about spying on the Fire Dragon and her friends… that was a completely useless thing to do, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, well… I found out…" Jack started.

"Do you really think that Omi is a Quaker!" Chase yelled. "What use is that for you!"

"Well…" Jack decided that it was best not to argue the point of the whole thing. "I really want to…anyways, this time it is different. Look at what Spy Cat Bot found out!"

"Do I really want to know?" Chase sighed. "Then again, you're going to show me anyways."

"Duh," Jack pushed a button.

"Meow," the cat called, suddenly projecting a video feed much like the Dojo-cam for the monks.

…

_The cat was moving through a short field of grass. It then hoped up onto a window sill near an open window. In the view came Katnappe and her parents. "So… I was wondering… could I invite someone over to spend the night? I mean… you guys are home and all, for once."_

" _You have a friend you wish to invite over," her dad startled all of a sudden._

" _It's been a while since you've invited a friend to spend the night," her mother commented. "Where have your old friends been?"_

" _I'm… not friends with them anymore… this is a new friend. Her names Kimiko. We're going to have girl talk tonight. So, can I invite her?" the girl smiled._

" _I don't see why not Ashley," her father stated._

" _Yes!" Katnappe let out a cheer._

…

"So?" Jack suddenly asked as the bot clicked off.

"I don't see the point in spying," Chase muttered. Something flashed through his mind, due to the fact that he remembered that Katnappe had shown up and was there when the whole Showdown happened. This meant that he knew exactly what she wished to chat with Kimiko about. The last thing he needed was Jack finding out certain things.

"Come on… one might find something interesting in this," Jack commented.

"Do you really think that the Fire Dragon will expose the Xiaolin secrets to a Heylin?" Chase suddenly asked.

"Duh!" Jack started petting the cat.

"Then you are dumber then you look. All they are doing is girl talk," Chase growled at the boy. "What did I tell you about listening into that?"

"That it is useless… duh!" Jack rolled his eyes. "But that doesn't mean that it isn't fun… and remember… I am bored. Very, very bored."

With that, Jack suddenly flew off. Chase couldn't help but to slap his forehead with the palm of his hand… hard too. Today was defiantly not going the way he had planned.

**M**

Jack was not the only one bored. A certain Xiaolin monk was also bored. He was pacing back and forth. It was then that he saw Dojo and Kimiko getting ready to leave. He hurried over to where they were. "Kimiko!"

"What is it Omi… and no… I'm not going to answer that question for you," Kimiko responded.

"May I go with you?" Omi suddenly asked.

"May you…" Kimiko startled. "Why would you want to go to an all girls slumber party.

"As I recall, Dojo is not a girl," Omi smiled.

"Yes… well, Dojo isn't human either," Kimiko sighed. "I have to say no to this one Omi."

"Oh… what exactly does one do at a sleepover?" Omi suddenly asked.

Kimiko paused for a second. "That's right… you've never had one… have you?"

"No, I haven't," came the reply.

"Well… we get to listen to cool music, paint each others nails, play truth or dare, such as it is," Kimiko responded.

"What is this, truth or dare?" Omi asked.

"Well, one either has to tell a truth, or they have to take a dare. If they don't do either… they don't tell a truth or take the dare, they have to do something silly. Of course… there has to be set rules. For example… one can't ask one to do something dangerous for their dare, or ask things they really shouldn't," Kimiko responded.

"I see," Omi was in deep thought. "Why does one paint their nails?"

"Remember when I painted my nails with pandas?" Kimiko commented.

"Ohh… so it is a way to improve ones fine motor skills for battle," Omi nodded his head. His mind was reeling with ideas.

"Also, one talks about things that are bothering them… and rule is… no one tells what happens there," Kimiko continued.

"Ahh… I see," Omi nodded his head.

"Do you?" Kimiko was quite sure that his mind was mixing everything up much like the idioms.

"Ahh… yes… it is a code of honor not to say anything," Omi sighed.

"That is what it is," Kimiko continued to pack. She filled up her bag and was ready to go. It was then that she saw the huge pack that Dojo had on him. Her eye suddenly twitched. "Dojo! We're going for one night! One night! You don't have to pack as if we are going on a trip for a month into the Amazon!"

"Well…"

"No well about it!" Kimiko fumed.

Omi used this time to sneak away. He went looking for Clay to ask him if he would be willing to have a sleep over, but Clay was busy eating dinner, a big load of ribs. Omi frowned at this and thought hard. He then came to the realization that his options were Master Fund and Raimundo to ask.

Omi frowned at this as he was still upset with Raimundo. He wished that the boy had thought a little more about the situation. He was supposed to be leader after all. Omi sighed and began to think about what he would have done in that situation, and found that it was actually a rather hard thing to think through.

The conclusion came to his mind very quickly. He would of course choose Clay. That way, if something happened, and he did end up losing, Clay could eat Chase Young out of house and home. That seemed like a very good solution to the whole problem. Then it came to his mind that it was a very silly, not to mention tedious problem to the whole thing.

He wondered what Clay would have done and figured that he would ask the boy later that night. For now, he had to figure out what else to do. He quickly came to the conclusion that asking Master Fung for a sleep over would sound rather ridiculous, as he was a grown up man, and it was supposed to be boy time.

His mind then came back to the question that had been plaguing him for a while now. He had to wonder if anyone would answer his question. He figured that the reason that he wasn't being answered was because this was something only Heylin do, and thus he would need to go and ask someone from the Heylin side about it.

He sighed as he realized his only option was to ask one Chase Young, whether he liked it or not. Of course, he wouldn't swear loyalty to get the answer, but he still would go and try to get an answer anyway, even if he was told no here too. He then went to the vault to get one of the transportation Wu.

* * *


	7. Katnappe’s House

Kimiko and Dojo landed in a place near Katnappe's house that was inconspicuous. Dojo raised an eyebrow, glancing around. "I it just me, or is this the same neighborhood in which Jack lives?"

"Well, that wouldn't really surprise me, as it was in a way through Jack that we met Katnappe… not to mention all the others," Kimiko suddenly stated.

"Yeah… but all of his other apprentices actually live in different places around the world," Dojo shook his head.

"Yeah… but Katnappe was also different too," Kimiko stated, carrying her and Dojo's things while he wrapped around her neck so that no one would think twice about a _green lizard_ walking around. For all anyone cared, Kimiko was having a conversation to herself, trying to figure out where to go from here.

Dojo let out a sigh. "Well… at least you know that they live in a nice area and the house isn't likely to be crawling with bugs."

"I don't know," Kimiko joked. "You have no clue what Katnappe will have locked away in some corner that her parents can't find."

"Yes… well, I doubt you ever hid anything from your parents," Dojo commented.

"Yes I did… my broken dolls," Kimiko sighed.

"Oh… yeah," Dojo cringed remembering what Kimiko's fear was. "You don't like dolls."

"No… it was that particular doll Dojo. The dolls I really like aren't to be played with either. Expesully my favorite set, which comes out only once a year. They are the Hina-ningyo," Kimiko commented.

"Oh… the dolls for Hinamatsuri," Dojo commented. "I think they should have had Dragon doll for the set."

"Were, were should they put the Dragon doll Dojo," Kimiko laughed. "There would have to be two for that, as it is supposed to be a symmetrical display, and it wouldn't work well in the middle."

"Well… then two is even better," Dojo commented, causing Kimiko to laugh again.

"Well, mine is one of the bigger ones, and then I have a miniature set of them too," Kimiko suddenly pointed to the door of a house. "That's Katnappe's house."

"Oh goody, we get to meet her folks. I wonder if she was raised by cats," Dojo suddenly chuckled.

"Dojo… stop being such a Dojo," Kimiko went up and rang the doorbell. The door snapped open all of a sudden.

"We are not buying, thank you," a lady with blond hair stated.

"Sorry, I'm not selling anything. I am here for a sleepover," Kimiko smiled at the lady, though inwardly she wanted to vomit. Katnappe's mother seemed rather stuck up.

"Oh… you must be Kimiko," the lady frowned. "I apologize… do come in."

Kimiko doubted that the woman was actually sorry for the mistake, but stepped in anyways. The woman then called up the stairs. "Ashley… your friend is here!"

At that, Katnappe hurried down the stairs. "I am so glad to make it. I almost thought that one of them wouldn't have let you come."

"Who?" Katnappe's mother suddenly asked.

"I have some guys who are rather over protective of me," Kimiko suddenly stated.

"I see," it was then that the lady spotted something around Kimiko's neck. "What… exactly is that thing?"

"That… that is her pet lizard," Katnappe suddenly spoke up.

"What… I didn't say it could come…" her mother suddenly became fidgety.

"Which is why I didn't ask, so you couldn't say no," Katnappe suddenly smiled. "Anyways… it is as smart as a Dolphin… quite rare with the reptilian family, so it won't do anything bad. Come on up to my room."

Kimiko quickly followed Katnappe up to her room and they quickly closed the door. They then began to laugh very hard, though Dojo didn't think it was very funny. "I don't appreciate being called a pet lizard…"

"Oh, come on! Saying you're smarted then a dolphin is a complement. They are supposed to be one of the smartest animals on Earth," Katnappe laughed. "Even smarter then chimps."

"Oh… that explains why Jack is so dumb… the monkey staff," Kimiko suddenly laughed.

"Ohh… good one," Katnappe hummed. "So… first things first… manicures and pedicures."

"Ummm…" Kimiko glanced at Dojo.

"Oh, I know… it is rather a bit awkward… I can very well do my own… I just need the supplies, and a chance to relax," Dojo climbed up on the bed, then spazed out. "What the… I thought you said you cat's would be in the basement!"

"The genetically altered kittens, yes. These are my moms show cats," Katnappe laughed. "But they prefer my room as all the other rooms…"

"I saw… it seems so perfect and refined… stifling almost," Kimiko suddenly commented.

"Yeah… my mom and dad are so rich, they fill that they need to show off," Katnappe sighed.

"That explains why you acted the way you did when we first met you. They set the example, and that allowed you to act out,"

"I guess it did," Katnappe sighed. "Hey… your parents are rich. Do you have this kind of problem?"

"Not really. My dad is the one I see the most of and he's the most showy of the two, and then it isn't a, see how pretty or handsome he is, but see how I can wow and astonish you… let me entertain you, excite you, make you laugh, have you enjoy your time," Kimiko commented.

"Wish my parents were like that. They're parties and their friends… including Jack's parents, tend to be boring. That's how I ended up meeting Jack. I was bored and he went and hid in the basement so that no one could find him. Garage I should say, that has a room built above in connected to the main house. Really, that isn't that great of a secret base. Mine is actually a basement with a trap door."

"So… why cats?" Kimiko suddenly asked, pulling out her nail polish supplies.

"That would be because… I've always liked cats. Ohh… and my favorite DC villain is Cabwoman!" Katnappe smiled.

"So you based your costume off of hers," Kimiko sighed. She watched as Dojo hauled one of the cats off the bed and grabbed one of the nail polish jars. "Dojo… don't you think you should ask before you paint the cats' nails…"

"Oh, its fine… he can do anything… even give them a bath. Not that they are dumb, they are that lazy and that put up with everything," Katnappe sighed. "Plus… my mom will freak out!"

"Isn't that a bad thing," Kimiko sighed. She began to file her nails and Katnappe did the same.

"Not typically," the girl stated. "So… who are your favorites from DC?"

"I like Poison Ivy, Nightwing, Batgirl, Joker for DC. For marvel I like Shadowcat, Avalanche, Nightcrawler and… are their any female bad guy?"

"I love Shadowcat too!" Katnappe laughed. "Anyways… let me paint your nails now."

"Anyways…" Kimiko stopped as Dojo dragged the second cat off the bed. "I wonder if Omi is going to try to get the boys to have a sleepover… it will be quite funny if he did."

"Why?" Katnappe asked.

"Because I told him about _girl_ sleepovers when he asked," Kimiko suddenly smiled.

Katnappe's eyebrows suddenly rose up. "All right… if anything funny happens and you can get a picture of it when you get back, you have so got to e-mail it to me. I mean… you are so lucky."

"What do you mean?" Kimiko suddenly asked. She let her nails dry while Katnappe fingered through the jars, not sure what color she wanted.

"Well… how to put it," Katnappe frowned. "On the Xiaolin side, you have more chances of funnies with the guys then on this side. I mean… sure, Jack is funny, but that's all the time. As for Chase Young… well… I have never seen him in an embarrassing moment… you know… a picture perfect one."

"Have you seen Wuya in a cheerleading outfit?" Kimiko suddenly asked.

"How?" Katnappe's eyes suddenly shot up.

"Well, it was in one of the alternative futures where Jack had control. He forced Wuya to wear it I guess," Kimiko sighed.

"That guy is such a pervert!" Katnappe narrowed her eyes.

"Does he even like girls?" Kimiko suddenly asked.

Katnappe blinked a couple of times. "You really don't want to know about that one."

"Something wrong?" Kimiko suddenly asked. She began to paint Katnappe's nails.

"Do you know what that gun was that he fired at you was supposed to do?" the other girl groaned.

"No… it was a pain in the neck," Kimiko sighed.

"Ohh… you're good at this… I love the cat faces!" Katnappe purred. She received a look from Kimiko not to change the subject, so she let out a sigh. "All right… it was a love ray."

"Eww… you mean… supposed to make someone fall in love with you!" Kimiko stuck out her tongue and made a disgusted face.

"Uhh… no… prove someone is ones soul mate… believe me… it really doesn't work," Katnappe sighed. "Wuya used it on Chase and that is what knocked him into you earlier."

"Really…" Kimiko suddenly glanced up, still concentrating on painting the nails. "That's… rather odd."

"Hnn? What do you mean by rather odd?" Katnappe was now curious.

"First, I have to finish your nails. Second, I have to talk… or more of do something to Dojo, not to mention show him something. Third… you have to promise that this stays between you and me," Kimiko commented.

"Oh… cat's meow, I so promise," Katnappe stuck her thumb into the air. "On my nine lives I do!"


	8. Lian-Li

Kimiko finished with painting Katnappe's finger nails, then called out Dojo's name. The dragon, who was busy with his salon boutique, turned away from the two cats. His eyes were confused as to why Kimiko wanted him, and then he found her fist coming down on his head and then she pulled his tail over to where she was sitting.

"What…" Dojo rubbed the top of his head. "Might I ask was that for?"

"I promised that I would owe you a second time around… don't you remember?" Kimiko stated, an evil grin on her face.

"Kimiko… I don't remember," Dojo sighed. "I mean… I do have over fifteen-thousand years experience on me."

"That you do," Kimiko still smiled, pulling out her phone. "Let me ask you this… what information do you have on the Silver Lion Claws that appeared along with the Pure Orb this morning?"

"What… oh yeah. You weren't with the boys when I talked about it," Dojo sighed. "Something about Chase and someone by the name of Lian-Li. I can't remember much about them, except I thought at the time they were a cute couple."

"I highly doubt that Chase could be a cute couple with anyone," Kimiko suddenly commented, her eyes flaring at the dragon for saying such things.

"I don't know," Ashley put a hand to her chin, thinking. "I can think of one person who might match him."

"Who… Wuya?" Kimiko rolled her eyes, fiddling with her phone as she did so.

"No… duh. Just finish with Dojo so you can tell me what you were going to tell me," Ashley folded her arms. "Though this about Lian-Li I want to hear."

Dojo rubbed his chin thinking about things. "Now that you think of it… quite a few things happened to young Chase Young. I happen to have remembered that when he kissed Lian-Li, the boys did something to him… I can't remember what."

"Oh my gosh! The Prince of Darkness had a first kiss at least!" Ashley had a big grin on her face. "This is so priceless and so not leaving the room. I mean… who would I tell… one Wuya? She'd throw a major fit… and I so don't like her. Plus… eww… look how old she is!"

"Hey Dojo… perhaps this is what they did to him, something similar?" Kimiko suddenly shoved the phone into his face.

"AAAAHHHH!" Dojo's eyes went wide and he fell over backwards. He then began wringing his tail. "How… how… how."

Kimiko shook her head at the dragon as he stammered. "Dojo… I figured you would have figured it out sooner. Anyways… the only one at the temple who knows is Clay and Master Fung. You can't say a word."

"Knows what?" Katnappe purred. "Ohh… this is interesting… and I have an idea now what's going on… and it is such juicy gossip. Course… we need to get another Heylin or Xiaolin girl to share with."

Kimiko shook her head at the smile and handed the girl the phone. "This is what they did to Chase… or _Ching_ as they liked to call him."

"Oh… my…" the blond haired girl couldn't finish and suddenly found herself on the ground laughing her head off.

Dojo however was shaking. "How ever did I think that the two of you would be a cute couple?"

"Cute couple?" Kimiko laughed. "I really don't think so about that one.

"But…" Katnappe suddenly gasped for some air. "I can so see it happening!"

"What…" came the reply from the two startled others.

"I mean… I've always seen you as the person most complementing to him," Katnappe smiled.

"Uhh… huh," Kimiko frowned at this.

"I have _so_ many questions!" Katnappe grabbed a pillow and hugged it tight.

"Like what?" Kimiko was suddenly not in the mood, however, Dojo went over to Katnappe's CD player and turned on the music in an attempt to lighten up the mood, and get over the shock, which would not go away easily.

"Like… I mean… you had to have gone to the past… what was he like?" Katnappe purred.

"He was…" Kimiko frowned, then shook her head, as she might as well talk about the whole situation. "You won't believe how naïve he was back then… but then he was a year younger then me… which was a bit… awkward."

"Well… it was only a year… and now look at how much older he is then you now!" came the reply. Dojo scurried over to the toilet in Katnappe's bathroom and began to vomit into the toilet. "By the way, what did you mean by naïve?"

"Can you believe this… he didn't know how to act around a girl!" Kimiko suddenly laughed. "He thought I was a boy, and when he found out I was a girl, his attitude towards me drastically changed. I mean… he thought at first that I was on the Heylin side, then he lost in a Showdown because he found out I was on his side. And then there was the kiss."

"I take it your first kiss?" Katnappe smirked. "I have yet to have mine. I think I'll wait until I am out of college and boys mature… then again… I don't think the ones like Jack will ever mature… and I want Omi to remain cute and naïve! Though he is starting to ask those kinds of questions."

"Yeah… it was my first kiss… wasn't very happy with that either," Kimiko stated firmly. "And he kissed me again… and if you count me doing CPR on him…"

"Wow!" Katnappe smirked. "The kiss of life is rather awkward and doesn't really count as a kiss unless they regain consciousness and end up kissing you, and sorry… but that is like one in a million chance of actually happening. But the second one…"

"I told him that whenever I had a picture of Ching in my head kissing me…" Kimiko shook her head. "He took it the wrong way."

"Oh… you mean… you meant his future self and because he took it as his now self… that is romantic," Katnappe sighed. "Of course… you know he owes you a kiss now so that you won't have to imagine his Heylin self kissing you when ever you remember your first kiss."

Kimiko's eyes suddenly went wide at this and her cheeks turned a little red. Dojo came out of the bathroom. It was then that something creeped up onto the windowsill. "So, you're telling me that you are the one who went back into the past?"

"Yeah Dojo," Kimiko's face quickly went back to normal.

"So… Kimiko and Lian-Li are the same person?" Dojo asked.

"Duh," Kimiko rolled her eyes.

"Shush… we have an intruder!" Katnappe slowly crept towards the windowsill.


	9. Peeping Tom Cat

Chase Young had moved to his throne room and sat down, closing his eyes. He crossed his arms and also crossed one leg over the other. Jack had followed him after releasing one of his Jack Bots to carry his cat back to the neighborhood that he lived in so that it could begin its mission to scout out the sleep over.

"I think this is utterly ridiculous," Chase commented, having failed to get away from the red head. "I also don't know why you have to be here to do this. Wuya isn't at your so called secret base."

"No. But I don't want to chance her being there," Jack suddenly commented to Chase's annoyance. He flipped a switch which turned on the screen that connected to the cat's visual and auditory sensory equipment. Instantly a video feed came through.

_What was first seen was grass as the small cat moved through the yard which the robot had set it down in. The one thing Chase had to be impressed with was, the robot could actually move like a real cat. However, he knew that this was going to end badly. Anything and everything having to do with Jack Spicer found some way or another to end badly. It then leapt up onto the window sill._

" _So, you're telling me that you are the one who went back into the past?"_

" _Yeah Dojo," Kimiko's face quickly went back to normal._

" _So… Kimiko and Lian-Li are the same person?" Dojo asked._

" _Duh," Kimiko rolled her eyes._

" _Shush… we have an intruder!" Katnappe slowly crept towards the windowsill. Chase Young had an idea where this was going and was suddenly glad that he was going to get to see the evil genius new toy get glomped. "Oohh… a kitty."_

" _A robot kitty," Kimiko muttered. "I think Jack is behind this."_

" _So… there was a peeping tom cat?" the blond girl purred. "I really like this toy of his. I think I'll keep it."_

"No! You can't keep my cat bot! IT'S MINE!" Jack suddenly yelled.

" _Well… we could modify the commands so that it no longer up loads a feed to him and doesn't obey his commands anymore," Kimiko suddenly said, taking the cat from Katnappe. She fiddled with it for a few seconds then the screen went blank._

"My, my, my…" Chase laughed. "I told you it wasn't a good idea."

"Well, I found out some useful information," Jack commented. "I found out that Kimiko and Lian-Li are the same person."

"Do you even know what that means Spicer?" Chase raised an eyebrow, an amused look on his face.

"Yes… well… no," Jack scratched his head.

"I know what that means," a small voice piped up, causing the two to turn and see Omi standing there.

"Hey, cheese head… what exactly are you doing here?" Jack asked, crossing his arms. "As I recall, you're on the other side."

"I am wondering that…" Chase gave the Xiaolin monk a boarded look. All he wanted was a nice, quite day.

"Nobody will answer my question, so… I decided to come and ask someone who might," Omi commented.

"And what price are you willing to pay for an answer," Chase muttered.

"Defiantly not my soul or my freedom. Anyways… it has nothing to do with Heylin or Xiaolin really, or good or evil, or Shen Gong Wu. It is more of a life based question that people are refusing to answer," Omi pouted. "I know not why."

"What is the question?" Jack became curious. "I may not look it, but I know a lot of things."

"When we were here earlier rescuing Kimiko, Raimundo thought that Chase Young had done something that dishonored him and possibly her. He was rather livid. I know it was a very bad thing, but no one will explain what it was."

"Huh…" Jack commented. After a couple of minutes though, a light bulb went off. He glanced first at Omi, then back and Chase Young. "He… and her… and that… I doubt it… I mean… he's more clueless about things like that then me… I think."

"Things like what?" Omi suddenly asked.

"I refuse to answer that question as it really is not something that someone your age should know about," Chase narrowed his eyes.

"Oh come on, it's not as if…" Jack suddenly had his ear grabbed by the Heylin warrior and pulled close.

Chase hissed in his ear. "If you breathe one word, I will allow my cats a new chew toy."

"Fine…" Jack muttered, the conversation not being heard by Omi. "I can still have some fun with him."

Chase watched as Jack suddenly went over to Omi and whispered something into his ear. It was then that Omi suddenly burst out laughing. "I don't see what is so bad about that… but I still don't see them doing that… with anybody."

This caused Chase to have a very irritated look on his face, knowing that Omi had been told something, and that something wasn't what Raimundo had been thinking at all. He had the feeling that this was going to turn into a ridiculous fiasco over at the dojo, something he was glad that he would hopefully miss. He glared at Jack. "Leave bug… I believe that you've caused enough trouble today as it is."

Jack pouted, but he caught the sight of Chase Young's eyes suddenly starting to change, so ran off screaming his head off. Chase then turned to Omi. "What exactly did you mean by, you know what it means by Lian-Li and Kimiko being the same person?"

"Dojo told us that Ching and Lian-Li made a cute couple. I know that Lian-Li is Kimiko. Which means that she didn't accidently call you Ching, did she?" Omi suddenly stated.

"So… what of it," Chase commented, knowing that at times Omi could be to smart for his own good. This was probably one of those times.

"I think he's right," Omi suddenly stated. The little boy watched as the Heylin warriors eyes suddenly went wide in surprise, and then narrowed.

"What the hell do you think that you're thinking?!" Chase suddenly yelled, holding back from changing into his reptilian form.

"If you like Kimiko, then that means that she might be able to turn you from the Heylin side back to the Xiaolin side," Omi commented.

"I highly doubt that… I don't care about anyone anymore," Chase glared at the boy, suddenly becoming bored. "Is this thought process due to the fact that you have the wish to turn me because you think there is still good inside me? There isn't."

"You've proven to me that there actually still is. In fact… I think maybe you never really turned evil," Omi suddenly commented. "All you did was switch sides. Which is rather confusing as to why I think that, but I have the feeling that this is the case. But… since us monks are like family, if you got together with Kimiko, then you could be part of our family."

"Family…" Chase's voice was filled with annoyance.

"In the alternate dimension weren't we like family when you remained good, Chase Young?" Omi then turned before the older one could tell him to leave. "I best be going now. Rai and Clay may be wondering where I am."

Chase could only glare at the child, the words that having been spoke having dived in deep and hard. It was one more thing that he really didn't want to think about. His life was being turned upside down just because of one event in the past he had purposely chosen to forget about, yet had gotten dredged back up.


	10. Boy's Night

Truth of the matter, Rai and Clay were not waiting for little Omi to show back up. Both were in their own little worlds, each at a different rate of perceptions. As he approached him, he found that popping in and out without saying a word did nothing to get them to notice him, as they were both overly absorbed in what they were doing.

Clay's of course involved the fact that his entire being was made for chowing down on anything that he could get his hands on, most especully beef and pork. What good old Texas boy didn't go and eat a full meal of bacon, eggs and ham… and beef cakes, for breakfast. Of course, a night time meals was of course different.

Rai though… was in a mood for some reason, and was off in his own little world, trying not to let things bother him that much, but truth was… things most defiantly bothered him, as he knew there was something up with Kimiko, and he knew Chase Young had done something to her.

Suddenly, Omi popped up, a huge smile on his face. "Good evening Raimundo!"

Raimundo just pushed him away, annoyance on his face. "What do you want Omi?"

"Can we have a girls' party?" Omi suddenly stated, a rather hopeful look on his face.

"Hold on…" Rai narrowed his eyes. "We are guys, so how can we have a girls party?"

"Well then, I guess we would call it a guy party instead!" Omi folded his arms, triumphant about his insertion.

"Come on Rai… it wouldn't hurt to humor the little guy, would it?" Clay muttered through a barbeque smothered face.

"Ehh… well… I guess so…" Rai sighed, not expecting what Omi was about to blurt out.

"Now we can paint each others nails!" Omi stated, causing both of the older boys to turn vividly pale. "What… did I say something wrong?"

"Where… did you get that idea?" Rai suddenly asked.

"I got it from Kimiko… she said they did that at slumber parties… and listened to cool music… and played dare and truth," Omi smiled.

"Truth and dare," Raimundo groaned.

"That too…"

"Look… Omi… painting nails is for gals," Clay stated. "It is makeup… a form of makeup…"

"Oh, well, I went and got paints ready, already," Omi frowned. "Now what am I supposed to do with them?"

"Ehh… Omi, what do you mean by, got paint ready?" Rai suddenly asked, only to have Omi hurry off. He glanced at Clay. "Are you sure it is a good idea for us to let him go off like that?

"Emm… we possibly will be in for a good laugh," Clay muttered. He tipped his hat. "Hey, Rai… can I ask yah something…"

"I don't see why not," Rai muttered as he tapped his foot as Omi hurried back.

"What would yah do if Kimiko didn't like yah the way that yah like her?" the cowboy suddenly stated.

"What is that supposed to mean, and where did that come from?" Raimundo gave him a skeptical look suddenly.

"Well, aye know that you have a thing for her… ever since we all got here," Clay stated firmly. "But Kimiko has never been happy with the fact that you have been womanizing. She's also been waiting for you for a very long time… to come to yah seances."

"Wait… you mean that Kimiko likes me?" Rai suddenly asked.

"No… not anymore… aye don't," Clay stated frankly. "Aye think when you pulled that stunt on Chase, she was not at all happy about it. Her crush went out the window. Hey… have you ever heard of the band, Trout Fishing in America?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Rai was annoyed for multiple reasons.

"They have a song about throwing things out the window… varies each time really, but they are one of the best bands ever! Their songs are hysterical!" Clay suddenly laughed.

"Never…" Rai suddenly had his eyes go wide as he saw Omi suddenly hauling something back with him. What he had been hauling with him were the cans of paint that had been used on the Xiaolin Temple when it was being repaired. He hadn't thought that any supplies had been left over. Both he and Clay suddenly burst out laughing.

"Omi… did yah plan on painting nails with that?" Clay suddenly asked.

Omi then pulled out a bag of nails. "Here… I have our nails… what exactly is so funny?"

"Kimiko… she meant toenails and fingernails!" Rai laughed.

"Oh… well, would we even be able to paint them with these brushes?" Omi suddenly asked, pulling out the huge paintbrushes. Is this some kind of womanizing technique like the pouring of the big teapot into a little cup? A challenge that girls go through?"

The other boys continued to laugh. Clay shook his head. "They use paint from these little bottles… and these bottles, they have a little brush that one adds to them."

"In other words… a girl thing!" Rai suddenly laughed. "Come on… lets drag our stuff into the dojo for a sleepover!"

**M**

Master Monk Guan was sitting in the dojo, meditating, when he heard the speaking up of someone from the doorway. He glanced up to see Doan there. "Come on in."

"Actually… I was wondering where one goes and uses the restroom… there aren't any chamber pots," Doan suddenly asked.

"That would be because the bathroom was invented, and I happen to have one installed so that we don't seem from an old time… " Guan stated. "I'll show you where it is."

"Ohh… all right…" the young man hurried after him, quite happy to be going along for the ride, wanting to go as soon as possible. However, when Guan stopped in front of the door, he stared at it. "What is this?"

"A bathroom…" Guan stated.

"And what am I supposed to do?"

"Go in the bowl that is white and completely attached to the floor," Guan stated. "It kind of looks like a chair… sit on it…"

"Ahh… all right…" the boy hurried in. "Hey, Guan… what is this white stuff?"

"Toilet paper…" the monk muttered. Getting the two accommodated to the day and age would be problematic.

"What do you do with it?"

"It works like leaves or cloth when… do you really want me to answer further," Guan stated, suddenly realizing he would have to wait outside the room, to his displeasure. Doan suddenly came out, and Guan lifted an eyebrow. "Did you flush the toilet?"

"Ahh… what?"

"There is a knob attached… push it after you finish, or the room is going to stink…" Guan sighed.

"Ahh… all right," Doan went in, but as soon as the toilet went off, he hurried out of the room. "You used your stupid powers on me!"

"I did not! It is supposed to do that!" Guan commented. "And as I recall, you're the dragon of the water!"

"Ahh… yeah… " the boy stated meekly, then went back in.

"What are you doing Doan?" Guan asked, only to get the response of the toilet flushing… and again… and again. "Doan… stop, your wasting water…"

"I can always go and refill it!" the boy commented. It was going to be a long night… and the two were supposed to be older then the Xiaolin monks.


	11. Truth or Dare

The three boys moved into a room and spread out their mats on the ground. Rai's was in the middle, while the other two boys places their mats on either side running perpendicular to their leaders. Omi bounced up and down on his knees in excitement, glad to have his first sleep over occurring, despite the fact he knew nothing about them... at least not when it came to the male variety.

The guy party started with the boys pulling out video games and clicking away the games. Omi however eventually frowned at this. "How is this a guy party, when we are just doing what we usually do on our free time, except we're together in one room dressed for bed and planning on bedding down."

"We're not bedding down." Rai sighed, setting the game down, frustration written all over his face. "I didn't exactly want to do this. I haven't had a sleep over since I was really little."

"Aye never really that many. It was just not something we did, considering we lived away from people." Clay muttered, pulling down his hat over his eyes. "It mostly happened when we visited relatives or they visited us. Except, things got very wild."

"Is there something wrong with having a guy party?" Omi stated. "Raimundo makes it seem like its something not cool."

"More of something you grow out of." The Spanish boy leaned on his hand.

"Then why are we having one if it is childish?" came the next question, which caused Rai's eye to twitch.

"That would be because ya never had one. It's something that needs to be experienced. Plus pardner..." Clay smirked at Omi. "Ya are younger then us. Ya are at the age you should still experience things kiddos are allowed to do"

"Then Rai and Clay are acting immaturely?" The round face twisted up in a smirk, only to have a fist slammed into his head. Tears suddenly welled in his eyes. "What was that for?"

"We're reminiscing on our childhood so that you can experience childhood." Rai muttered, irritation written in his voice.

Omi's voice twisted up again. "So then, what about Kimiko and Catnappe? They aren't doing it because they are looking back on their childhood? Are they being immature about this?"

At that, the two older boys suddenly burst out laughing. Clay shook his head. "Girls... the age they stop is much higher."

"Then females mature less fast then us males." A huge smile spread on the child's face.

"No..." Rai stated. "When they get older, they change things to doing stuff like painting nails."

"Why?"

"Ya seen Kimiko and her constant change of style." Clay let out a sigh.

"What else do they do?" Omi frowned.

"There is that game, truth and dare." Raimundo grumbled.

"And that is..."

At that, the Brazilian boy slapped a hand to his head. "You ask a person truth or dare. If they say truth, they have to answer the question. If they say dare, you dare them to do something. If they then don't do those things, they have to do some sort of punishment."

"Oh..." Two eyes blinked, and then a huge smile showed up. "I dare you to go jump off the roof!"

At that, Clay tipped his hat down. "Omi. You're supposed to ask which they want, then they answer. You're also not supposed to ask stuff that goes against moral codes or would get someone hurt."

"Oh... yeah, Kimiko said something about rules. It's kind of like a code of honor?" Omi stated, a smile on his face. "I want to go first!"

"Fine. Truth or dare." Rai asked, a rather bemused look on his face.

"Dare! I want a dare!" Omi smirked.

"I dare you to stand on your head until you take a dare again." The dragon of the wing laughed.

However, the small boy suddenly pouted. "But... I want to have. Can't you dare me to jump off the roof, or even better, fetch a certain object from the center of the earth?" However, a look from the other boys caused him to suddenly flip over onto his head, a pout on his face. "This is boring."

"All righty. Truth or dare Rai." Clay spoke up.

"Truth," came the response.

"Do you like Kimiko?"

At that, there was a pause. "You know, Omi is right. At this point, this is so far boring. I'll freely admit that I have a crush on her. Everyone knows that I do, right?"

At that, Omi frowned. "Clay, it's my turn to ask you, right?"

"Yes..."

"Truth or dare?"

"Dare," Clay stated firmly.

"I dare you to ask me what the answer to the question I was asking earlier was." The small boy had a rather thick smile on his face.

"Wait... wait." Rai shook his head suddenly. "How did you find out the answer to your question Omi? No one in the temple would have given you the answer."

"That's why I went to the Heylin side." The small boy stated, still balancing on his head, a rather large smile on his face.

"You turned on us Omi?" Clay stated, a smirk growing on his face while Raimundo frowned at the two.

"Nope! I simply went over to their side and visited Chase at his place. He didn't answer me, but Jack did!" The child continued to smile.

At that, the two older males glanced at each other, rather shell shocked at the whole revelation. Rai let out a deep cough. "You had better ask. Jack may have just contorted Omi's innocent mind. They guy _is_ a pervert. _"_

"All right omi, do ya want truth or dare." Clay shook his head.

"Truth! I get to stay on my head longer!" The small boy stated, a smile written on his face.

"Well, someone is enjoying this." Raimundo frowned, boredom spreading across his face.

"What did Jack tell you?" Clay sighed.

"He told me that Chase Young made Kimiko dress in a bunny suit!" Omi smiled. However, a frown soon appeared. "How was that a bad thing?"

Both boys suddenly burst out laughing. Glancing at Clay, Rai quickly spoke up. "Because it is an insult to Kimiko's sense of style."

"So, Chase Young did it because women are supposed to be subserviant?" The next question caused the other boys to flinch.

"How many girls do ya know who are subservient Omi?" Clay sighed, shaking his head.

"Well, the only girls I know are Kimiko, your sister, Kattnape and Wuya." At that, Omi pondered. "Since Wuya is the only one whose ever acted subservient, is it a modern, young girl thing to rebel against social norms?"

At that, both boys bust out laughing. Rai shook his head at the small monk. "Omi. They _reflect_ the social norm. Women aren't subservient anymore."

"Is that why you'll never end up with Kimiko then?" The question caused the other to to pause.

"Where did that one come from?" Rai's voice was dry, the humor completely gone.

"Truth of dare Rai." Omi blurted out instead.

"Dare." Rai stated, shaking his head.

"I dare you to jump off the roof." The small monk stated.

"Omi, we told ya not to give dangerous dares." Chase shook his head at the small monk.

"But it shouldn't be dangerous for us, right?" Omi smirked suddenly. "You two forgot about that."

At that, Rai let out a sigh. "Fine. I'll do it."

At that, the three stood up and began to sneak out to the main area. Two sets of footsteps creaked against the wooden floor, while Omi's fingers maneuvered him upside down to outside of the compound. Rai glanced around and then carefully climbed up to the roof of the building and glanced around.

The air blew past him and the stars shown down on him. He thought to himself about the fact he thought that Kimiko would like this view, but found himself stopping when he remembered Master Fung's words about letting his crush on Kimiko get in the way. Letting out a sigh, he closed his eyes, thinking about things for a few minutes.

They snapped open, when he heard the complaints from down below. Pausing, he found himself moving to the edge and glancing downwards. "I am trying to concentrate. This must be spectacular, must it not?"

At that, he closed his eyes again, and held his arms out like he was diving off a board into a pool of water. He then made the jump, heading to the ground head first. He opened his eyes to see Omi and Clay with their mouths wide open and he suddenly smirked and did a few tricks in the air, involving wind and slowed his landing down, managing to land softly on his feet. "You were right Omi, that wasn't dangerous."

As they were standing there, Master Fung suddenly came around the corner and walked past them, his eyes closed. However, he opened one eye. "While I am glad that the three of you are enjoying your slumber party, please keep all activities inside." And with that, he was gone. Letting out deep sighs, the three moved into the room, Omi on his hands the whole time.

At that, they moved on to the next one. Rai let out a deep sigh. "Truth of dare Clay?"

"Truth." Clay muttered haphazardly.

"What were you and Kimiko talking about earlier?" The Brazilian boy commented, a smirk on his face.

"I can't tell you. That was very private Raimundo." The boy narrowed his eyes in frustration.

"Then as punishment, you get to wear a pink tutu. Or something like that."

"Fine, I will." Clay stated, storming off to grab an item of Kimiko's. "I'd rather she be mad at me for stretching out her tutu, then this. He then turned to Omi. "Dare or dare."

"You're supposed to ask truth or dare." The small boy pouted. "Fine, dare."

"Stop standing on you head. We aren't playing the game anymore." The cowboy's mood was dark as he pulled the tutu on and flopped down.

"Oh." Omi flopped down, disappointment in his voice. "Now what?"

At that, Rai ran his finger in a circle on the wooden floor. "I've honestly been thinking about what to do with Chase Young."

"That is a problem." Clay stated firmly. "I will tell you though, if you decide to kill him, Kimiko will _never_ forgive you for doing such a thing."

"I won't either." Omi stated firmly, folding his arms across his chest. "I want Chase to be family with us."

At that, Rai let out a deep sigh. "See, here is the thing. I have the option of giving Chase his freedom. That would show that we don't keep our enemies locked up and don't hold those who lose challenges with us as slaves like Chase Young does."

"So... you're going to just let him go? I wanted you to make him come back to our side." There was a pouting face on the small monk's face.

"Omi... if I let him go free, we'll have to deal with him still and he is by far the strongest, smartest opponent we have. I want to take a gamble. I can't go into the what the gamble is, but I am going to take it. We leave in the morning when Dojo and Kimiko get back." The young monk stated, folding the blanket over his head.


	12. Choices

The other boys eventually fell asleep and Rai continued to look at the ceiling thinking about the three options he had come up with in regards to Chase Young. " _I never thought I'd be faced with three options, all of which will have some sort of negative repercussions. My three options are letting Chase Young have his freedom, take his freedom away or... well, I guess there are four options as out right killing him is in fact an option. However, the forth option is as good as death for him from what we know."_

" _Giving him his freedom would make him our enemy again and he's really someone we could use as an ally against the Heylin side. On the flip side, what I know of Chase makes me feel that would kill him simply because his freedom has been taken away. Killing him is out of the question as killing him is wrong and would make us just like the Heylin._ "

" _On the positive side of things, giving him his freedom back is the right thing to do. Not giving it to him means that we would have a strong ally and he would help us stop Heylin from turning the world into a living hell. And killing him means that I don't have to think about him anymore, so I'm scratching that completely because I'd obviously be doing that for self centered reasons._ "

Rai let out a deep sigh as his mind came back to the forth idea. " _As I've previously though, the forth idea is most likely going to kill him, so I don't want to think about it. But, I have thought about the positives of the other three as well as the negative, so I should be thinking about the positives of destroying his soup and forcing him to go cold turkey._ "

" _While it is true that it may very well kill him, as I've told Master Fung, we do not know if it will kill him. If it doesn't kill him, not only will we have Chase back to the guy we remember from the other time line, but he'll also have his freedom, not just from us but also the soup that has him under his control. If I was in his situation I'd want the others to try everything they can in order to get me back to my normal self._ "

Rai took a deep breath before nodding off to sleep. He woke up as Omi bounced on him, causing him to startle away. "So, what are we going to do now?"

"We have to wait for Dojo to come back with Kimiko so we can go see Chase Young."

"Aye take it then that ya came to ya decision Rai?"

"Yeah, but chances are the rest of you aren't going to like it."

"Meaning?" Clay frowned at the boy.

"I'll tell you what we're going to do when Kimiko gets back." Rai waited patiently for the two others to get back.

A few hours later they came into the room. The young female had a smile on her face and Dojo spoke up. "Katnappe does a really fine job with the pedicures and nail polish. I am very refreshed."

"Good, because we're going to Chase Young's lair." The dark skinned youth stood up while dusting off his pants.

"What! No! I hate that place!" Dojo bemoaned.

"So... you've come to your decision the?" Kimiko's mouth twisted up into a frown.

"I've decided we need to destroy Chase's soup."

"Hold on a second. If he doesn't have the soup then he's going to die." Clay shook his head.

"The thing is, we don't know if he _is_ going to die." The female frowned at them, folding her arms across her chest.

"Are ya sure ya didn't let ya dislike of Chase get in the way of making this decision Rai?" The husky male pulled his hat down to cover his eyes.

"I don't want Chase to die."

"Look... the other options aren't any better." Rai leaned back where he was sitting. "Killing him outright is wrong. Taking his freedom from him is also wrong despite the fact it does mean we'll have him on our side. Giving him his freedom means we'll have another strong enemy. But this option, in the long run whether he lives or dies he really will have his freedom. Because I got to thinking about it, as long as he is drinking that soup its controlling everything he does."

"That is very philosophical." Omi nodded his head in agreement.

Kimiko frowned. "I'm not going to go with you guys. I know that you have good intentions Rai, but just thinking about it makes me ill. I need some time to think about this."

Clay watched as Kimiko got up and left before speaking up. "Are you sure we need to do this today?"

"The sooner we get it done the better." Rai stated, pushing himself up from the ground. "That also said, if you guys don't want to come either then that is fine. I get it. The whole thing isn't nice business, but I think this is the right thing to do. And this time I'm not letting my feelings get in the way. Honest."

"So you don't care about Chase at all?" Omi blinked a couple of times.

"No..." Rai took a deep breath. "What I meant was I wasn't letting my feelings for one of you guys get in the way and I'm not letting my distrust of him get in the way. Though I do admit that my admiration for the Chase Young of the other time line may very well have helped me form my final decision. If we can get him back, that's a good thing, right?"

The small figure folded his arms across his chest. "I'd think that Kimiko would want to get him back more then _any_ of us. So why is she so upset?"

"What do you mean she'd want..." The dark skinned youth suddenly frowned before shaking his head upon realization. He could feel the corner of his mouth twist up slightly as his throat tightened. "No. I get it. I'm not sure why it is that way. But if it is the way that I think it is, I think the best way to put it is if she is the one who wants to get him back the most, she is also the one most likely to not want to lose him."

"Again very philosophical." Omi bowed his round head to Rai. "I am sorry I ever doubted your ability to lead."

Rai took a deep breath. "For some reason I figure I deserve that one."


	13. Crushed Jars

Chase Young sat in the big chair as he waited for the Xiolin monks to make up their mind about what to do with them. A dark eyebrow raised up when he saw the three males and the dragon approach him. "You are missing one."

"Yes, well..." A frown spread over Omi's face as he clutched his hands together.

"If you care at all for Kimiko then be glad that she chose not to come." Rai's words caused Clay to raise an eyebrow.

"I don't know what you're talking about." The young man leaned on his arm while staring at the group.

"For some reason I think you actually know more then I do and you know full well that she has feelings for you." The dark haired boy folded his arms. "And what we have planned for you isn't something you're going to like, but you're going to do it."

"I really haven't an idea what you're talking about in reference to your friend." The young man narrowed his eyes. "You actually think though you can torture me or something?"

"Well, what we have planned will be torture and you may even end up dying." Rai looked Chase right in the eye. "But if it goes the way we want to, it will be worth it to you in the long run."

"And what are you going to do? Have me..." Chase pulled back as realization hit him. "Are you crazy? Everyone knows that will be certain death."

"No... they don't." The young man continued to look him in the eye. "You're going to destroy your own supply and then you are going to come back with us to the monastery so we can make sure nothing bad happens."

"I've told you that my real form is the reptilian form and if I don't drink the soup I'll revert to that form." The young man glared at Rai.

"You've told us that, but we've also never seen it. Exactly how long have you ever gone without the soup Chase?"

"I'm not going to answer that question." Chase stood up. "I'll let you learn from your own mistake why this is a bad idea and then it will be to late."

Omi frowned at the former Xiolin warrior before turning to Raimundo. "So... does he even know how long he's gone without the soup?"

Clay frowned before looking at Rai. "I'm not sure if this is a good idea anymore. What if he goes nuts and goes on a rampage?"

"He'll be at the monastery and we can keep an eye on him." The Dragon of the Wind folded his arms across his chest. "Of course, if I just let him have his freedom he can't have Kimiko, can he?"

"You..." The large monk snapped his mouth shut without saying anything else. The three followed Chase up to the place he kept the soup, only to hear a smashing sound. They turned the corner into the room and found the floor covered in the green soup.

Chase glanced up before folding his arms across his chest. "Happy now?"

"Let's get back then." Rai hiked his thumb at the door. "We're late for breakfast and I am sure that you're hungry as well."

"If you think you can goad me with such words you are wrong."

Clay let out a deep sigh before his stomach grumbled. "No. Rai's serious. We forgot about breakfast."

Dojo suddenly waved his hands. "I am _not_ carrying someone who would want me for breakfast. So back off."

"I can think of many ways to torture you." Rai piped up.

"By the way, what about my warriors?"

"Release them. Give them their freedom."

A grumbling came from the young man before he snapped his fingers. "I don't like you."

"I don't care really."

**M**

Kimiko was sitting at the tables with Master Fung. The man took a drink of his tea. "I understand that you're confused about your feelings about this."

"What does occur to someone who has drunk the soup?" The female's face twisted up with frustration.

"We honestly don't know." Master Fung set his cup down. "Chase has said that he would be stuck in the reptilian form for ever. However, there has to be something more to this as drinking the soup day after day must be tedious and time consuming."

"Perhap when he turned to the dark side he became vain." Kimiko let out a deep sigh. "But that in itself would be a relief because it would mean that the guy I came to like personality wise doesn't exist anymore."

"And yet he saved you." Kimiko swallowed just in time to hear shouting from the court yard. Master Fung nodded his head at her. "I shall see to it that our guest is taken care of." The man stood up and headed to the court yard and waved at Chase to follow him. He could see the look of utter disgust on the young man's face. They headed towards the indoor training area and sat down. "You do realize I have a few questions to ask of you."

"Am I required to answer?"

"Things will go easier for all of us if we know what will happen to you if you go off the soup. My first question is how long have you gone off it before."

"I've gone off it the most for two to three days, but that was years ago." Chase continued to frown at the man. "As for your next question, I honestly don't know what the result of going off the soup will be."

"What has occurred that has caused you to go back on the soup?"

"I find myself unable to control my transformations, which is why I assume that I will be stuck in the other form until I drink the soup again. It may even be permanent if it goes for to long." The man then narrowed his eyes. "Are you sure you shouldn't have spoken with the Dragon of the Wind before he made this decision? There is a chance I'll go on a rampage."

"I wonder if that is your real reason for not going off the Soup." Monk Fung watched as Chase's Adam's apple bobbed down. "As I thought, the real reason you don't go off is because you don't know if you'll be in control after the whole thing is said and done. You also don't want to lose yourself. And yet being stuck having to take that soup day after day and year after year. Is that how you wish to live?"

Chase swallowed again before letting out a deep breath. "Are you willing to actually put your lives in danger to find out that there is something of me left in there? I'm not worth it."

"And yet you are Chase Young. The younger monks particularly think you're worth it."

"One of them didn't come. The other two are following orders and I don't trust the sanity of their leader."

"Kimiko didn't come because she knows that while you may be free of the hold that the soup has on you we may also lose you. All four of the monks came to know you well in the alternate time line and are fond of you and they look up to you."

"As you wish. As I told the Wind Dragon, the repercussions fall on your heads, not mine." Chase narrowed his eyes. "That said, if you are willing to go through with this I have two requests."

"And what would those be?"

"When I start coming off the soup I want to be chained up in a manor that I hoepfully can't cause others harm. I also want her as far away from me."

"I have no control over Kimiko's actions. You may want to tell her that you don't want her near as you don't wish to hurt her."

"You assume I have feelings for her."

"Perhaps not. I'll see what we can do and how things turn out."


	14. Pastimes

Chase left Master Fung and walked out into the court yard to enjoy some piece and quiet before he had to deal with the constant changing and other effects going off the soup would cause. He sat on one of the stones and began to meditate, only to find his concentration broken by the voice of a young female. "Chase?" He opened one eye to look at the Fire Dragon. "Can we talk?"

He opened his mouth to say that he was in the middle of meditation, but the look on her face told him that what Kimiko wished to talk to him was important. He scooted over on the large rock and patted the hard stone as an indicator she should sit down as well. He then set his hands on his knees and waited for her to speak up.

"How do you feel about what is going to happen to you?"

"You need not worry about me." The older male turned to look away from her.

"Except I can't _not_ worry about you. Nor can Omi for that matter." Kimiko closed her eyes. "I don't think he understands what going off the soup means for you as his mind is fixated on the idea that you'll be like your old self once again. Except I don't think you ever lost your old self."

"I sold my soul for the soup Kimiko." Chase could feel one finger tapping at the stone while the corner of his mouth twisted down in frustration. "I've also got an ego the size of China now, in case you haven't noticed and that was something I never had before."

"I think your ego is just you trying to hide what you really feel about what's going on. And even if you do have a major ego it isn't as bad as Rai or Omi's egos." The female crossed her arms across her chest. "I think having an ego goes with the territory of being a guy and only a select few guys like Clay are actually without an ego. Even my dad has an ego."

"I haven't spent much time with them, so I honestly don't know what kind of egos they have." The man leaned on one hand and looked at her, now wondering where the conversation was going to go.

"Omi wants to be the most powerful of us all rather then working in a group. Rai lets his achievements go to his head and he imagines these girls suddenly surrounding him."

"And what is my ego issue according to you."

"You don't like it when things go your way and you don't like dealing with people with lower intelligence then you." Kimiko remained with her arms crossed. "If you could describe your ego as being the size of China, then Rai's is the size of Africa and Omi's is the size of the world."

Chase couldn't help but laugh. "That actually fits. Would you say your friend Clay's humbleness is then the size of the galaxy?"

"Yeah, but don't tell him that. He'll deny the whole thing." Kimiko redirected the conversation. "I asked you how you feel about what is going to happen to you?"

"I haven't thought about my feelings in a long time, so I can't say." The man watched as a frown appeared on the female's face. "So I need time to think about all of this."

Kimiko let out a sigh. "Well, then I'll let you get back to meditating. That may help you figure things out."

"There is one thing I'm going to ask of you." Chase closed his eyes. "Don't let your feelings for me get yourself hurt by myself."

The female shook her head before taking off.

**M**

Guan found his eyes rolling into the back of his head as he heard another complaint from the two younger monks. Yet again he heard Doan let out an exasperated comment. "How much farther?"

"I think that should be quite obvious to the both of you." The man crossed his arms. "So now you can rest from your exaustion and..."

"We're here!" Tao suddenly ran forward and Doan hurried after him through the gates of the monestary.

The master monk felt his eye suddenly twitch. "Now hold on here, you two are guests here."

He watched as the two suddenly crashed into Master Fung and fell to the ground. The man raised an eyebrow. "While it is good to see you Master Guan, I am wondering who your two friends are."

"These two are young monks in training that have been sent through time from the past. You might say one of your young dragons actually knows them as well as a certain person on the Heylin side." Guan let out a deep sigh. "I walked them here since I was visited by Master Dashi. It took many hours of marching since early this morning, but they seem to still be full of energy so you are free to have them clean the floors of the entire place."

Master Fung raised an eyebrow. "Speaking of a certain someone, he happens to be here. Why don't you all follow me."

The two boys found themselves sitting on cushions at the back of the training hall while the two masters spoke at the front. Guan frowned at the master. "What is this about Chase Young being here?"

"As you may or may not know, the Wind Dragon has won a dual with Chase Young that allowed him control over the freedom of movement. Rai made the decision to have Chase Young destroy his soup and then he brought him back here."

"That could be very dangerous. No one knows what will happen to a person if they go off the soup."

"Yes, well Rai is wanting to gamble that Chase Young will become his old self by going off the soup." Fung turned to look at the two at the back. "How much do these two know?"

"They are not familiar with the fact that Chase changed sides let alone the fact that Chase has had a growth spurt since they've seen him. There is a chance that they'll start a fight with him. Or they may get on the bad side of young Kimiko if they say the wrong thing. She knows them as well. It will be interesting to see how this all turns out."

Doan suddenly raised his hand. "Can I use the restroom? And do you have a restroom that doesn't have that strange device in it?"

"Sorry, but we've fully embraced indoor plumbing because it helps to prevent issues of bad smells."


	15. Lian-Li Again

The journey from one temple to another was not to Tao's liking, particularly due to the fact Guan clearly told him and Doan that there would be no way to send them back to their time as their disappearance had been a permanent thing. He also told them that it was a good thing that he wasn't having to inform them that they were dead in the past either. Tao found the comment to be quite unnerving, not to mention the idea of not being able to see his family again grated his nerves.

On top of this he still refused to believe that Master Dashi and Ching were dead. As they marched through the countryside, they found every so often a device that they had never seen before including a car that had been abandoned by the road side. Tao knew the thing was used for transportation purposes but couldn't find where the horses were supposed to be connected, to which Master Guan told him that cars didn't need horses.

Every so often Doan would groan about the situation but finally they found themselves at the main temple. They found themselves invited into the monasteries indoor training facility where they had to sit still for what seemed like a longer time then what they had been traveling, but chances of that being true were far from being likely. The whole thing was interrupted by Doan bringing up the need to go to the bathroom.

They found themselves heading down the hall following the instructions that they were given. Tao held his arms behind the back of his head. "I do not understand this whole plumbing thing."

"Believe me... you don't want to understand. I woke up in the middle of the night and the place you have to go to the bathroom roars like a dragon trying to eat you. I think it is a form of punishment because we were so mean to Ching. No, I think it is Ching's ghost."

"Don't be stupid." The other boy stated. "So you don't like the bathrooms they have? Then we just need to go to the bathroom outside. There is nothing wrong with that, it is quite natural. We just need to go somewhere outside of the walls."

"I guess that is all right." The bigger male followed behind the other and let out a sigh of relief upon finding relief.

"Excuse me extinguishes sirs. Is what you're doing a form of male bonding that I don't know about? May I join in?" Tao blinked a couple of times as he looked down to see a small child with a very bald and very shiny head staring up at him. He then glanced back at Doan to see that the male was as flabbergasted as he was. "If so I have plenty of water for the task."

"Did he just say..." Tao found his eyebrow raising up.

"Yeah... he said water instead of..."

Both males found themselves kicked from behind. "Omi! Pull your pant back on and go to the indoor bathroom if you need to! As for you two..." Tao pushed himself up as he tightened his belt in order to fight the person, only to find his cheek twitching. "What the hell do you think you're teaching him!"

"Excuse me?" The boy snapped his words out. "When did the temple let girls in!"

"I should be the one saying excuse me. Neither one of you have the right to talk to me Tao."

"Ahh... you know who are most distinguished guests are Kimiko?" The small boy krept behind the female. "I do agree with them that females should..." The female suddenly hit the small boy on the top of the head as she pushed her lips together in anger. "Ow! That hurt!"

"Their names are Tao and Doan, Omi. And no, they aren't distinguished guests. They're very bad role models. They're nothing more then bullies."

"Don't speak as if you know who we are woman!" Tao suddenly grabbed Kimiko by the front of her clothing, only to have her eyes suddenly flare up.

"Oh... we've met. The thing is you don't know who I am and that gives me great pleasure. Then again, you took great pride in picking on _Ching_ that I know how moronic the two of you can be. I'm still miffed with how you treated him in the past."

"Excuse me... the only one outside of Master Dashi, Guan and Chase to know us was..." Tao suddenly felt another twitch coming on. "...Lian-Li."

"I'm confused." Omi sighed as he went to sit on a rock.

Doan came and joined him. "I am as confused as you are friend."

Kimiko suddenly flipped over and kicked Tao from behind, causing him to stagger. "You're starting to get it, aren't you?"

"Oh... you want to be my friend?" Omi spoke up. "But Kimiko says that you are a bully of this Ching person. Where have I heard that name before?"

"When are you going to fight me seriously, huh?"

"Ow..." Doan covered his eyes as Kimiko continued her kicks and blows as Tao continued to throw insult after insult at her. I don't know who this girl is, but Tao's done wrong by getting on her bad side." He then turned his head towards Omi. "Ching is the nickname we gave Chase."

"Chase Young?" Omi frowned at this. He then slapped a fist into the palm of his hand. "I remember something. Kimiko and Lian-Li are the same person!"

"How can that be? She is a girl and Lian-Li is a boy."

"Kimiko is not know for being very feministic, so it is no wonder that..." Omi found himself suddenly clutching the top of his head.

"I am quite sure that you were going to say it was no wonder that someone mistook me for a boy when the truth is I disguised myself as a boy. Which is something that they should remember!" The girl snapped the words out. She then pointed her finger at Tao who was beginning to bruise. "As for you, let me make something clear. In this day and age women are considered the equals of men. There is no longer this backwards thinking. So don't you keep teaching it to Omi."

"If there is no longer such backwards thinking then why does he think the way he does."

Omi raised his hand with a big grin on his face. "I know! Its because Kimiko is the first girl I've met and I've only met two other females!"

Kimiko slapped her palm across the front of her face. It was then that Doan's stomach grumbled. "I rather am hungry."

"Why were you guys going to the bathroom outside?" The female ignored the other boy's comment.

"Because! I've seen those special, magical bathrooms. They have these water dragons roaring in them and their scary."

"There is a water dragon in the toilet?" A smile suddenly spread across his face as he took off towards the bathroom.

"Oh no..." The female shook her head. "If you help me stop him from trashing the bathroom then I'll show you where we eat."

"But... the dragon."

"The sound is made by water going down the pipes. There is no dragon there." Kimiko stated as she hurried off.

Tao glared after her. "I'm not helping her."

"Yeah... but I want to see what kind of trouble this Omi person is getting into."

The other male raised an eyebrow. "Now that actually sounds fun."

The two then hurried off and followed right on her heals. As they rounded the corner they found the hall suddenly flooded with water. Doan found himself slipping on the water and crashing into both Tao and Kimiko causing them to go sliding across the floor until they were right in front of the door to the bathrooms. The female shoved them off and hurried in as they followed into the stalled area. "Omi!"

One of the three stalls was open and a small boy was standing on top of the toilet seat grinning as he used his water orb to dump water into the toilet. The smile though then faltered. He then hid the orb behind his back. "I was not doing anything. Jack Spicer was just in here making a mess and I was trying to stop him."

Tao raised an eyebrow. "Does he honestly believe that we'll believe his lie when we caught him in the act of sabotage."

"It is not sabotage! I was using my imagination just like how I use my imagination while playing goo zombies. Its not my fault that this kind of play isn't illustrated in the same manner!"

Doan looked at Tao as Kimiko hit Omi on the top of his head. "I don't get it."

"Omi! You know better!"


	16. Grumbling

The next thing both boys knew they were helping the other two Xiaolin monks to clean up the bathroom. Omi kept running back and forth at a very fast speed and nearly knocked Raimundo over when he came in. The dark skinned male raised an eyebrow at the site. "What are you doing in the boy's bathroom Kimiko?"

"I'm helping clean up to make sure that they do clean up." The female pointed at the two boys that were helping clean up despite the rather disgusted looks on their faces.

"First, I've got to use the restroom. So you can step out and I'll supervise." Rai sighed. "Second, who are they."

Kimiko stepped out of the bathroom and spoke up so that he could hear her while he went to the restroom. "They're a couple of guys I met when I traveled into the past. They were teaching Omi some rather nasty things and when they suggested there was a water dragon in the toilet Omi decided to flood the bathroom in order to get the water dragon out. I've got to go let someone else know they're here."

"In my defense I was using my imagination." Omi held his ring finger in the air in defiance.

"How is that a defense?" Rai grumbled from inside the bathroom. The toilet flushed and he stepped out of the room.

"I didn't know that the water wouldn't go down the toilet as I poured it in!" The small boy continued to hold the one finger up.

"Keep cleaning. You know this is the punishment you would have gotten in Master Fung had caught you. Actually, it might have been a lot worse. What came over you?"

"I made new friends. They're hip and cool."

"Umm... Omi..." Rai leaned against the door frame.

Doan's head popped up. "What is this hip and cool thing?"

"It's a modern day saying in reference to something that is the latest fad. Omi is actually misusing it."

"I am not."

"You misuse a _lot_ of modern day sayings."

Tao glanced up, his eyes narrowed. "What is with the dark skin?"

"I'm from a country half way around the world from here." Rai frowned at them. "Is my skin color an issue."

"So... you were brought to China as a slave and the monks bought your freedom?" Doan continued working at cleaning up the floor.

"Excuse me?" Rai felt a twitch coming on.

"Well, how else would you come to be in China?" Tao picked up the bucket and dumped it out the window.

"Yeah... that tells me how out of the loop you guys are. It doesn't take a lot of time to travel around the world anymore. You might want to say there are mechanical Dojos flying around now."

"Amazing..." Doan looked up with a big grin on his face.

Tao though simply turned to Rai. "Yeah, I'm sure all of that is true."

"They have the magical bathrooms though." The bigger of the two looked over at Tao and folded his arms across his chest.

"They aren't magical. It is technology."

**M**

A few hours later Rai led the two to the eating rooms where a lot of tables were. Tao frowned, but Doan had a smile on his face. "This is so much nicer then what we had!"

"Yeah..." The other boy folded his arms just as Clay came out of the kitchen carrying some trays. "What is with all of the apprentices not being Chinese."

"I'm Chinese!" Omi raised his hand, only to have it pushed down by Rai.

"He's being raciest Omi. Don't encourage him."

"Should I be thankful I don't know what that word means?" The boy piped up just as Kimiko passed him.

"It has a similar meaning to sexist, which you are." The female stated. "I see you two have found your way to the dining area."

"No thanks to you. You said you would show us once we were finished." Tao turned to glare at her.

"Would you like another beating?" The girl narrowed her eyes at the young man. "And no, you don't have the right to say that I'm weaker then you when you don't even dare to lift a finger. How insulting can you get."

The boy's eye twitched before he suddenly turned at her. "I know that the Japanese prize their female warriors, but that is why Japan is weak compared to China. Go be a shrine maiden already!"

"He didn't..." Rai slapped his head.

"He did..." Doan shook his head. "And yes... you could say that Tao is raciest."

"What is this about Japan prizing their female warriors and thus being weaker then China." Omi clutched his head suddenly. "I've not heard of such things. All the television shows only male warriors."

"Yeah... I don't recollect seeing any male Samurai in any of the programs I've watched."

Doan crossed his arms. "You don't know? Japan has always had a long line of female Samurai, as they call their warriors. There aren't many, but we heard stories of them from master Dashi. He spoke highly of them, but Tao took that as a sign that Japan was week."

"So... its kind of like the Amazons." Rai nodded his head. "Cool!"

"What are the Amazons?"

"They're a legendary warrior group from the country I come from. Nobody knows if they were real or not though. Well, they may not have come from my country. They're part of Greek or Roman mythology." Rai let out a laugh. "But their fun to talk about."

All three watched as Tao went flying across the room and out the door. Omi then piped up. "Just to let you know, saying, "No he didn't tends to indicate that someone is going to get pummeled by Kimiko."

"Except you. You just get your head bonked." Rai sighed. "Clay and I learned not to cross her a long time ago."

"You guys talk of her as if she is indeed a formidable fighter." Doan twiddled his thumbs. Omi said no while Rai said yes.

Clay walked over letting out a deep sigh. "Omi only says no because of his views on women. Omi, would you like to cross Jessie?"

The small boy suddenly paled before scurrying off. "I suddenly lost my appetite."

"Who is Jessie?" Doan asked.

The cowboy suddenly tipped his hat down. "My sister."

"Believe me... you do _not_ want to mess with Jessie." Rai found his mouth twisting up. "Not only is she tough, she's butt ugly."

"Excuse me!" Clay suddenly tackled Rai to the ground. "Don't you _dare_ talk about my sister like that!"

Kimiko came back carrying two trays of food and jumped nimbly over the boys. "Truth be told, Jessie's problem is that she doesn't wear the right clothes for her body type. She's trying to be something she's not."

And with that Doan was left with the two boy's tumbling on the floor while Tao came back in. "She's gone?"

"You're scared of her..."

"No I'm not! I'm not afraid of nobody!"

* * *


	17. Food for Thought

Chase went back to meditating when Kimiko left him, but found himself brought out of a rather calm state of mind by the smell of food. Instead of his stomach grumbling with delight he felt it give a nauseating lurch of discomfort. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes to see the young female monk standing there with two plates of food.

He found himself taking one of the plates from her and picking up a piece of cooked meat and frowning as he examined it. "This seems to be dripping with some kind of sauce."

"It's Clay's good old Texas barbeque. It's actually pretty good." Kimiko sat down next to him and bit in to her food, only to pause in her chewing once she realized he wasn't eating. She swallowed before speaking. "You need to eat don't you? Doesn't it smell and look good."

"While I admit that it does smell good and doesn't look unappetizing I don't think I'll be able to stomach eating it. It looks kind of greasy and to be honest I've been used to eating one thing and one thing only all these years. I'm also not really hungry and likely won't be until sometime this afternoon."

The small female frowned. "Do you mind me eating in front of you, or should I go else where?"

"I might end up trying something. I can't guarantee it though." The young man put the plate down beside him.

"I won't say anymore about how good it is, but I am going to enjoy your company."

"I doubt my company is something to really enjoy." The young man leaned back and found himself watching her eat. A feeling passed his train of thought that he couldn't put his mind on. Feelings had become a primarily foreign thing to him that when they did crop up he could place them, nor did he understand how to deal with them.

"Perhaps that is because you've enjoyed your own company and no other persons company that you have grown bored of your own company."

"I have had the company of Jack Spicer and Wuya in the past."

"Now there are two people who can't possibly be much company for anyone."

"True..."

"So you can't say that you're not good company when you know that both of their company would indeed be far worse." The girl glanced up at the sky. "I also think I should forewarn you that Tao and Doan are here. They're in the kitchens."

Chase's facial features remained emotionless and then he found himself speaking up again. "So?"

"They used to tease you and it was rather obvious that the three of you never got along. There is likely to be an incident."

"And I'll try to avoid them. I think that goes without saying." The young man leaned on his arm from boredom. "What do all of you do in order to keep your mind off things?"

"Goo zombies."

"Is that some kind of training game?"

"No, its a video game." Kimiko let out a laugh. "I'll let you borrow it sometime. Goodness knows all of the other guys have."

"I'll see." The male glanced at her plate to see that she had finished half of her food. His frown deepened though upon hearing two familiar voices.

"That food sure was good Tao."

"Yeah, but this isn't home."

"We can't go home though."

Chase took a deep breath. "If you don't mind I'll be taking off before those two idiots find me."

Kimiko let out a deep sigh and held up the other plate of food. "Be sure too..."

The young man was gone in a flash and she found herself shaking her head. She heard Tao's voice suddenly speak up. "Well now, who do we have here?"

"Go away Tao." The girl narrowed her eyes at the two boys. "I don't have time to deal with two morons like yourselves.

"Morons..."

"Hey... that extra plate. Are you going to eat it?"

"No... that's..." Kimiko frowned. "You know, the person I brought it for isn't interested in eating it and it would be bad to let the food go to waste. Go ahead and eat it Doan."

The young man hurried over and sat down next to her and began to chow down on the food while she continued with her own. Tao folded his arms. "How can you two eat that stuff."

"Is the only reason your saying that because its food your unfamiliar with?" Kimiko bit into the food. "Or is it because Clay made it and he isn't Chinese like you?"

"What ever. I honestly don't care." The young man looked at her. "You'll get fat if you eat that much."

The small females eyebrow suddenly twitched. "I know the only reason you're saying that is because you're trying to goad me. I've already proven that I can beat you hands down, so you really need to stop with the idea that you can bother me like you think."

"Girls can't fight."

"I've already proven you wrong, so don't go there."

"No you haven't. I just refused to lift a hand against you because you're a girl."

"Sure..." Kimiko shoved her plate towards Doan. "I've lost my appetite. You can finish that if you want to. I have better things to do then deal with the two of you."

'You're just running away from the fight."

"You're just in denial." The small female walked away. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw a shadow and let out a deep sigh before jumping to the room. The shadow caught site of her and she waved for them to follow. When they were both away from the two she sat on the edge of the roof. "What happened to avoiding them Chase?"

The young man came and sat on the edge of the roof next to her. "Leaving you to deal with them alone wasn't right."

"So you were going to step in if things got out of hand. I can very well beat up Tao on my own."

"Leaving you with them would still have been dishonorable. As they didn't see me I managed to avoid them and not leave you alone with them and the same time."

"All right. What ever you say."


	18. Own Buisness

"All right. What ever you say." Kimiko hopped down from the roof and headed back towards the kitchens to see if she could help clean up. She paused when she realized that Chase was following her.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable." The ex-Xiolin monk's tone of voice remained rather emotionless.

"No... I was just surprised that you were following me. You're not the most sociable person and tend to keep to yourself. But you're free to come with me." The female monk continued forward and felt a smile twisting up on her face. She arrived with him at the kitchens and saw that the other three were busy already. "Do you guys need any help?"

Rai glanced up. "No, just keep Chase busy."

"Excuse me?" The armored man crossed his arms.

Kimiko folded her arms. "You make it sound as if Chase is a disaster waiting to happen Rai."

"No... well, I can see why you would say that." Rai let out a deep sigh as he set his cleaning item on the ground as he sat back on his heels. "We have things handled here, so we don't need your help. That said, I think it is best to keep Chase away from those two morons as I think they would..."

"What two morons?" The group turned to look in the direction that the voice had come from and all of them saw that Tao and Doan were standing there. "Are you talking about us?"

Doan raised a finger and pointed it at Chase. "Umm... who are you?"

"Who cares? He's obviously not a monk so he should get the hell away from the temple." Tao folded his arms across his chest.

Rai let out an irritated sound. "You don't recognize him, do you?"

"No, why should we?"

Omi frowned. "They are morons."

"Excuse me brat?" Tao started forward only to have his head grabbed by Chase. "Oi... mind backing off?"

"Tao... perhaps you should apologize to Omi," Kimiko frowned.

"What?" The young man turned to look at her. "Why should I take orders from a female whose willing to whore herself out to a weak monk just so she can have some sort of status."

The corner of Chase's eye suddenly twitched and the corner of his mouth turned up. He then brought his arm back so that it was bent at the elbow before pushing it forward and shoving Tao out of the room. The next thing he knew he was being grabbed by the four modern monks of the temple and being dragged backwards.

Omi shouted from his grip on his leg. "No! Don't fight him!"

"Come on, back off Chase." Clay held onto him by the arms while Kimiko and Rai held onto his waist.

Tao had landed hard on the ground and brought a hand to his mouth before spitting. "Did you say Chase?"

"Chase?" Doan had a rather dumbstruck look on his face. He then held his arms forward and went rushing forward. "You're alive!"

The next thing the five knew they were being knocked to the ground and an exasperated sound was heard as the group found themselves in a pile. Kimiko peeked up while a slight growling sound came from Chase's throat. Tao though however walked over and there was a dark look in his eyes. "Doan, let go of him."

"But he's alive! Aren't you glad he's alive?" The bulky Chinese teen found himself being shoved away by Chase's hand. As the other male pushed on his face he turned to Tao. "Well, aren't you glad?"

There was a bit of silence before Tao spoke up. "You are right about one of us being a moron. Let's go to another part of the temple where they aren't."

"But..."

"Doan, Chase isn't a Xiolin monk anymore." The lithe Chinese teen watched as Doan pulled away.

"I don't understand."

"I'll explain it to you one we're away from these..." The young man closed his mouth before turning. "Let's just go."

The two then disappeared and Chase felt the young monks relax their grips on his limps. "Why did you have to stop me?"

"Because we can't have you tearing the temple apart because of some grudge match from the past."

Chase stood up before reaching down to help Omi and Kimiko up. "I apologize for not avoiding them like you asked."

Rai took a deep sigh. "Don't worry about it. From the looks of it we may not be able to stop you guys from getting into a fight the next time around. That Tao person looks right mad at you."

The ex-monk crossed his arms. "I don't see why he would care as he never liked me in the first place. Unless he is simply mad because I misplaced Dashi's trust in me."

"You're actually admitting that?" Kimiko blinked a couple of times.

Air came out of Chase's nose. "Master Dashi... never mind. If you don't mind, I will be finding some place quiet to meditate in hopes that they don't bother me."

The ex-monk then left while Rai pulled his knee up so he could rest his chin on his knee. "I thought Chase would be a problem for us simply because we we're taking him off the soup, but goodness knows that those two are likely to be a bigger problem at this point."

"They've always been a problem Rai. It's really not anything new. Chase could though be an even bigger threat if he goes manic on us, and those two may make him go that way sooner. Perhaps we should have Master Guan take them away?"

Rai folded his arms across his chest. "If we have to deal with Chase become manic sooner, we deal with it sooner. It may be better for all parties around. The one problem I have with getting those two to push his buttons so we can maybe get Chase back is that he may tear them into shreds in the process."

"It would serve them right."

"Kimiko!" Clay shook his head at the small female as she turned to leave.


	19. Self Reflection

" _I think your ego is just you trying to hide what you really feel about what's going on.._ " Chase stood off to the side, taking a deep breath as he tried not to think about what he thought would likely happen. He swallowed, not liking the feeling that was starting to well up in the pit of his stomach. It was most definitely the feeling of fear, what he might do should he lose control. His fingers reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Please kill me now."

Meditation seemed like the only way to escape, yet his mind couldn't settle. First, his meditation had been broken by the smell of food. His mind flickered to Kimiko offering to let him borrow a video game, and a hiss escaped his mouth as the regret of not being able to live up to said promise came hurtling back. He didn't like the feeling at all, nor how Doan and Tao's disrespect of Kimiko made him feel either. Deep down though, another thought convulsed around his head. " _I misplaced Dashi's trust in me._ "

"I still don't understand why you're making me avoid Chase. He wouldn't hurt me Tao. That's just not who Ching is."

Chase let out a groan, wondering why he managed to choose a spot to meditate near where Tao and Doan where. He bit his lip, drawing blood slightly. Simply hearing their voices again made him want to hurt them, the memory of their torment flickering through his head. A shudder ran down his spine, as the time he normally drank the soup each day crept closer, his throat tightening.

"Not hurt you? Do you even know what he is?"

"Our friend?"

"No dummy. He was never our friend. Don't you realize he's gone to the Heylin side?"

A hand clamped down onto Chase's shoulder as Tao told Doan the truth he'd yet to pick up. He turned to see Guan, giving him a look of pity. He found himself batting away Guan's hand, not at all pleased at his ex-friend's attempt at trying to sooth his irritation and the other feelings running around in his head. "I don't need to hear this, nor do I need your pity."

He attempted to walk away, only for Guan to speak. "It seems like I came at just the right time, as you have no more soup to drink."

"Yes. I expect you to kill me once I go mad from this self-inflicted curse of mine. That is, after all, the way of the Xiaolin." Chase's eyes darted away, unable to look Guan in the eyes as he worried his lips.

"If he turned to the Heylin side it's our fault! Don't you see it!"

Doan's words came unexpectedly, as Chase had expected the shock to make Doan not want to have anything to do with him. Instead, his jaw tensed, and his eye twitched. Guan let one eyebrow rise. "It looks like you're not as alone as you think."

Chase's eye twitched even more, his head turning to look at Guan. "It looks like Doan's not the only idiot."

"Why did you drink the Lao Mang Long soup?"

The younger of the two ex-friend's felt his eyes blink. He'd not thought of his reasons for a long time, and instead simply kept going day after day, getting lost in the repetitiveness of eternal youth and life. "Does it matter?"

"Doan seems to think it's his fault."

"He's an idiot to think that their childish attempts to torment me as a child sent me down the path of evil. I would have gone down that path anyways."

"That sounds like something Tao would say."

Chase turned, trying to figure out what Guan was up to, let alone thinking. A smile flittered across his face. "That really means nothing. Just do your job when the time comes. And leave her and Omi out of this."

"There must still be good in you if you're worried about those two."

The younger of the two choose to ignore his ex-friend, and instead walked away, finding a place to sit as the withdrawal symptoms began to set in. A shiver ran down his spine, as he sat there, unsure of what to do next. Chase's eyes closed, thinking carefully of what to do, knowing full well he'd just pushed Guan away. Asking for help even from Fung seemed wrong, even though he knew he should do so, if he didn't want to completely loose himself.

A hand reached up to pinch his nose, wondering if he should just give in, letting Guan and the others kill him once he went completely mad. Pulling his hand away, he saw a small female monk standing in front of him smiling, although very weakly. "How are you doing?"

Chase's tongue clicked against the roof of his mouth, the instinct to say some form of snarky comment about how he didn't need help attempting to take hold. His voice remained low, the cocky attitude he normally took on for once seeming useless. "I apologize for causing you trouble."

"It was Rai's decision to destroy your soup despite the fact we don't know what will happen, let alone if there is any kind of cure."

"Aren't you all better off without me?"

"Don't talk like that." Kimiko took a deep breath. "Some of us would miss you, you know."

"I don't see why." The words were truthful, blunt, and would hopefully deter the conversation as well as the Fire Dragon's interest.

It didn't. Kimiko simply folded her arms behind her back, and smiled. Chase's eyes narrowed, wishing she'd just lose her temper with him like she did the other monks, but instead she just smiled, as if she knew some kind of secret that she wasn't going to tell him. It was another thing he wasn't in control of. "If things actually turn out well, perhaps you'll get to see why."

Chase continued to frown. He also couldn't say anything.

"We do though need to know how you're doing." Kimiko rocked slightly on her heals, purposefully playing with his mind and…

Chase shook his head, not wanting to believe that the female monk was possibly flirting with him. He felt his head pound. "You're annoying."

Annoying, at least in the way she made him feel. Her blue eyes narrowed. "You know why."

"Because precautions need to be made for when I finally go completely insane."


End file.
